05/08/2026
SWAG Mental Health Services would not exist without the love and support of my father and business partner, Richard Taylor. And today we are honoring him and his memory.
One year ago, he was killed by medical negligence and physician apathy inside of a monopolized healthcare system that should not exist. As a healthcare provider with specific experience in colorectal PCU and postop procedures, I can say with complete certainty and confidence that my dad‘s death was preventable. They made him sit in an isolation room for nine days, hoping that a bowel obstruction would just go away. No physical therapy, no nutrition, minimal hydration. No interventions. Just pain medication. I specifically told his attending physician on May 4 “if you don’t do something, he’s going to perf.” She looked at me with arrogance and disgust and said “if he doesn’t eat, he won’t perf”, pulled off her gloves and turned and left the room. On May 5, 2025, in the very early morning hours,it finally perforated. And then they let him sit for over 7 hours before they ever did surgery. He never had a chance.
and CEO, , have taken complete advantage and control of almost 2 million lives in East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia. This healthcare monopoly has stagnated the entire region, leaving individuals with no choice, no help, and no hope. Ballad Health executives have been strategically placed throughout the Tri-Cities, so that there is no voice other than the Ballad voice. This is no different than organized crime. It’s the same business structure as organized crime. So how are we looking at this any different?
Mediocre, substandard, negligent care has become normal. And people have either had to accept it, stay home, or purchase helicopter medi-flight insurance to be airlifted out of the area in an emergency (and yes, many affluent families have purchased this as a solution).
WILL SOMEONE PLEASE HELP?!
If the Federal Trade Commission
believes monopolies threaten Americans’ access to affordable food, then healthcare monopolies deserve even greater scrutiny — because healthcare determines whether people live, suffer, or die. And my dad died because of it.
•Food is essential. Healthcare is life itself.
•If monopoly power is dangerous in grocery stores, it is catastrophic in healthcare.
•Patients are not consumers buying convenience items, they are human beings seeking survival.
Healthcare monopolies control access to life-saving care. No corporation should hold monopoly power over human survival.
And for those of you, that will suggest that I get an attorney- believe me I tried! All you coward attorneys out there I’m calling you out right now. The state of Tennessee caps these cases at $1M. So, no attorney will take on cases against Ballad- they either can’t make enough money, or Tennessee law is too restrictive. It’s a “free kill state for doctors” according to a national law firm.
Leslie Taylor
Christian Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner Alliance
