[2] He left the ministry when then-minister Daniela Bartoş, unsatisfied with his performance, demoted him to director general from secretary of state, and he refused to accept this new title.
[2] Shortly after leaving this position, he was questioned by the National Anticorruption Prosecution Office in regard to the illegal transfer of 5 billion lei (some $150,000) to private companies during operations for procuring 2,000 air purifiers for state-owned hospitals.
In 2007 and 2008, he worked for both Inox, a stainless steel manufacturer, and as chairman of the board of Forza Rossa, Ferrari's representative in Romania.
[5] Among his priorities as minister were the maintenance and efficient allocation of a sin tax, the introduction of a computerised system to track prescriptions and of a new pricing scheme for medicines and a growth in private health insurance and hospital competition for funds.
[6] He promised significant pay raises for physicians,[7] and in May 2009 fired 73 hospital managers for failing to meet contractual benchmarks.