Maria Todd Resigns from Global Healthcare Travel Council (GHTC) Board of Directors, Effective

Immediately
Denver, Colorado, Feb. 10, 2015 Citing unreasonable demands for an uncompensated non-compete
and interference in a business relationship, today, Mercury Healthcare International, Inc.s founder
Maria Todd announced that she is stepping down from her volunteer position on GHTCs Board of
Directors.
Ms. Todd, was a founding member of the GHTC Executive Board and was appointed as its Education
Chair when it was organized in Monaco in 2012. She served in both capacities without compensation
and has given hundreds of hours of volunteer service to the organization since 2012. To support the
efforts of GHTC, she waived her professional speaker fees in 2012, 2013, and 2014 to show support for
the organization. Ms. Todd received no professional speaker compensation for preparation of class
materials, presentation time, and hundreds of hours of travel time. To understand the magnitude of this
offensive demand from GHTCs chairman, Emin akmak, the average one-way flight time in each
direction for most GHTC events from her home in Denver, Colorado has been about 40 hours in transit,
the same amount of time that many people throughout the world work at their jobs in an entire week. In
addition to the level of travel intensity, she placed herself at risk for thrombosis, exhaustion, and
removed her availability from the calendar for other remunerative work. Another 40 hours was spent in
transit to return home. Usually, all this and the time at the events are time away from family, pets,
home, and other work, and all in a span of about 7 days. Todd felt that the demand for an
uncompensated non-compete was both unreasonable and indefensible.
Interference of an ongoing business relationship
On February, 9, a client of the firm, made an announcement of an upcoming educational event in Kiev
Ukraine, in which Ms. Todd was engaged to conduct a training course for medical tourism facilitators,
travel agents, and healthcare providers, insurers, and government authorities in that country. The client
in Ukraine was previously in a romantic relationship with GHTC Chairman, Emin akmak. Upon
becoming aware of the April event, Mr akmak issued an ultimatum demanding that Ms. Todd break
her contract signed in October 2014, with the client in Ukraine.
8-booksMs. Todd has been a highly-compensated, international expert and branded, professional
speaker, author and consultant since 1983. She has more than 2700 US and international seminars,
workshops, webinars, book signing appearances, and lectures to her credit, and is the author of 14
commercially published textbooks, including 4 titles on medical tourism. No other speaker has given
more presentations on medical tourism strategy, physician integration, concierge medicine, and
managed care topics over the past 30 years.
Ms Todd believes that Mr akmaks demand that she cancel a contracted professional speaking
engagement while also expecting her to speak at three future events later this year without
compensation was petulant and inappropriate. These are two adults; to entangle my professional
business activity in the middle of their acrimony is unconscionable said Todd.
In cases where Ms Todd has agreed to non-compete terms with other clients, each client pays an
amount equal to the economic disadvantage that the non-compete represents to MHI both in potential
revenues and opportunities. The terms are renewed annually, on a market-by-market or client-by-client
basis. She offered the same arrangements to Mr. akmak, for himself or as Chairman of GHTC.
Professional workshop organizers must pay their featured speakers and workshop leaders or they have

no product to sell.
Several weeks ago, Mr. akmak requested her availability to speak at an event in Dubai scheduled for
October, 2015, for which participants would be charged an admission to attend. She confirmed her
availability but no Letter of Agreement was signed and terms of compensation for her appearance were
not finalized. In his letter on 10 February, as if to add more incentive to capitulate to his ultimatum, he
mentioned that he planned to host her to speak at other events in Ukraine and Turkey in October
2015, where participants would receive discounted or free admission as a membership amenity as
members of the Turkish Health Tourism Council.
For all three events, she offered the same terms and conditions offered to other nonprofit associations
who request her to spend 10-12 days away from her work to travel, develop the presentations and
deliver each presentation so that the association can offer an educational event for fundraising. To both
offers, his response was:
Thank you Maria, good luck and wish you all the best.
Warm regards,
Emin AKMAK
Founding Chairman
Global Healthcare Travel Council
She interpreted his response to be a constructive disharge from her tentative reservation of the dates for
Dubai and has placed them back into her schedule for other assignments and bookings.
Todd concluded: I have given generously to GHTC and to Turkey and Mr. akmak. The organization,
formed several years ago has failed to gain the anticipated traction as a medical tourism council of
councils. The countries that were invited to join have not given the necessary support for its mission
and vision. I can no longer afford the time and effort to support this particular organization if it cannot
move forward.
After careful consideration, I also believe that to ask that I break my contract with a different client
who has already marketed the April program, would cause irreparable harm to her business. Further, it
would harm my professional reputation as a speaker who commits my availability for an event and then
withdraws so close the event date. I further believe that if I agree to this inappropriate and retaliative
request not to participate in his former romantic partners event Ukraine, then other seminar and
conference organizers in the international community will be next on his list. I cannot risk this.
Therefore, in the best interest of my professional reputation, corporate shareholders interests, and my
professional brand, all personal relationships aside, it is time to step away from GHTC immediately. It
is unfortunate, but I simply dont have time or interest in the drama of personal relationships gone
awry. I am fond of Mr. akmak and his former partner, but I have a company to run and a limited
calendar with heavy demands. I cant become involved in these things.
maria k todd mha phdMaria Todd charges professional speaker fees and executive travel expenses to
conference organizers at rates commensurate with her experience as a professional speaker and expert
regardless of for profit or not-for-profit status. She has been listed with and booked by 7 professional
speaker agencies for more than 15 years. These agencies market and arrange bookings for professional
conference organizers (PCOs) who require healthcare experts and book authors to make presentations
on topics about managed care, contracted reimbursement with insurers, medical tourism strategy,
physician integration, physician employment contracts, healthcare marketing and branding, concierge

medicine, and other timely topics. Each agency takes a commission for handling the bookings
according to an agency marketing agreement. GHTC or Mr. akmak have never been authorized to act
as an agency for Todds appearances.
Ms. Todd remains an independent and free agent as she has been for more than 30 years. She welcomes
the opportunity to deliver training and expert presentations at conferences and events throughout the
world. If any assertion to the contrary is made in the future or has been givenin the past, conference
organizers are kindly requested to contact Ms. Todd for verification at +1.303.823.4662.
Contact Details
Chelsea Irving
Media Contact
The Mercury Healthcare Companies
Email: maven@mercuryadvisorygroup.com
600 17th Street, Suite 2800-South Tower
Denver, Colorado 80202 USA
+1.303.823.4662 USA (Office)