On July 16, 49 attorneys general (AGs) announced that they joined a $202 million settlement with Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Gilead). Previously announced by the Department of Justice in April, the settlement resolved allegations...more
Healthcare fraud enforcement continues to be a top priority for federal authorities, with Stark Law violations remaining under particular scrutiny. The complex nature of physician self-referral regulations, combined with...more
The HHS Office of Inspector General (OIG), in connection with its enforcement responsibilities, must exclude a party from the federal health care programs if the party is found to have violated certain federal laws. This type...more
On October 15, Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced that his office reached a $27 million settlement with Precision Toxicology to resolve allegations that it submitted false claims to government health...more
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California announced on October 11 that Dr. Janette Gray and her former medical practice, The Center for Health & Wellbeing in San Diego, resolved False Claims Act (FCA)...more
The following is a summary of selected federal Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (OIG) reports of fraud and abuse enforcement activity across the country. The enforcement actions reported...more
The reach of the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claims Act is broad. As a result, AKS liability is a real and significant risk for healthcare companies and providers. Healthcare companies and providers have to resolve...more
This issue of McDermott’s Healthcare Regulatory Check-Up highlights significant regulatory activity between August 21 and September 20, 2022, including a guilty plea from a telemedicine physician who wrote prescriptions for...more
Prosecutions related to the submission of claims to Tricare for compounded pain creams continue. The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed convictions against a Florida pharmacist, physician, and Navy veteran for their...more
The Department of Justice announced in a February 1, 2022 press release (Press Release) that it obtained more than $5.6 billion in settlements and judgments from civil cases involving fraud and false claims in the fiscal year...more
The False Claims Act (“FCA”) is a punitive civil statute that acts as the federal government’s primary tool for combatting fraud in government health care programs, such as Medicare, Medicaid, and Tricare. In fiscal year 2020...more
Durable medical equipment (DME) is particularly important for many Medicare beneficiaries. However, companies that manufacture and sell DME need to be careful because there are strict federal regulations outlining almost...more
William F. Gould In United States v. Merino, No. 19-50291, 2021 WL 754589 (9th Cir. Feb. 26, 2021), the court of appeals reversed the conviction of Marina Merino of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud in violation of 18...more
Report on Medicare Compliance 29, no. 45 (December 21, 2020) - CMS said Dec. 18 it will audit a sample of hospitals for compliance with price transparency requirements, which take effect Jan. 1, according to MLN Connects....more
Report on Medicare Compliance 29, no. 2 (January 20, 2020) - - The HHS Office of Inspector General has updated its Work Plan, which includes an item on early discharges from inpatient rehabilitation facilities to home...more
Boston Heart Diagnostics, a Massachusetts company, agree to pay $26.7 million to settle a False Claims Act case involving allegations of paying illegal kickbacks to physicians....more
On March 18, 2019, the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed an amended complaint-in-intervention in the False Claims Act (FCA) case against Diabetic Care Rx, LLC d/b/a Patient Care America (PCA); two of PCA’s executives; and the...more
Healthcare Management Associates (HMA) settled criminal and civil charges with the Justice Department for illegal fraud and kickback schemes. HMA billed federal government healthcare programs for inpatient services that...more
The Justice Department’s commitment – resources and public statements – has continued at a steady pace in the Trump Administration. Some might diminish the effort by recognizing that fraud is so pervasive that it is like...more
Recently, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced its largest ever national health care fraud takedown, resulting in charges against 601 diverse defendants including...more
United States of America, et al. v. BlueWave Healthcare Consultants, Inc., et al. (9:14-cv-00230-RMG) is a significant qui tam action recently tried to a jury before Judge Richard Gergel in the District of South Carolina....more
• In an unusual move, the government has decided to pursue a False Claims Act (FCA) suit against a private equity firm based on an alleged commission scheme at its pharmacy portfolio company to promote sales of products...more
In February, the Department of Justice (DOJ) intervened in a False Claims Act case alleging healthcare fraud, a common enough event. The case in question, originally began in 2015 as a whistleblower case brought by two...more
The United States Attorney’s Office (USAO) for the Middle District of Florida (USAO-MDFL) prosecuted several civil health care fraud matters in 2016 and issued related press releases. A review of the USAO-MDFL’s criminal and...more