Atlanta Gastroenterology Associates Pays $4.75M to Settle Allegations of Kickbacks and Unnecessary Medical Testing Services

By the Constantine Cannon Whistleblower Team To resolve allegations of kickbacks and medically unnecessary services, Georgia-based Atlanta Gastroenterology Associates agreed to pay a False Claims Act settlement of $4.75 million.[1] The Alleged Scheme: Unnecessary Medical Testing and Lab Services Kickbacks According to the United States, starting around May 2017, Atlanta Gastroenterology Associates contracted with Advanced Pathology Solutions (APS), a pathology lab in Little Rock, Arkansas to build and run a small-scale...

Mail Order Pharmacy Owner Settles False Claims Act Allegations of Kickbacks and Fraudulent Billing

By the Constantine Cannon Whistleblower Team On September 26, Acting U.S. Attorney and Special Attorney Alina Habba announced that California resident Andrew Do agreed to settle allegations that he violated the False Claims Act through illegal kickbacks and fraudulent billing practices at his three mail order pharmacies. Do’s Pharmacies From January 2016 through December 2020, Do owned and operated three mail order pharmacies: Family Care Investments d/b/a Value Pharmacy, JD Health...

DOJ’s MSO Kickbacks Crackdown Continues with $6M Settlement

By the Constantine Cannon Whistleblower Team The Department of Justice recently announced a $6 million settlement from a laboratory CEO, physicians, and marketers who allegedly used management services organizations (“MSOs”) as vehicles for illegal kickback payments.1  MSOs are business entities that provide administrative and other services to healthcare providers, but in this case they were allegedly used to disguise kickback payments as investment distributions. Former True Health Diagnostics CEO Christopher...

Community Health Network – Healthcare Fraud/Kickbacks ($135 million)

Constantine Cannon represented a whistleblower alleging Indiana-based Community Health Network violated the False Claims Act and Stark Law by paying physicians exorbitant salaries in exchange for referrals to Community Health facilities.  In December 2024, Community Health agreed to pay $135 million to settle the matter.  This was in addition to the $345 million the company paid in December 2023 to settle related allegations.  Read more – Indy Star, Modern Healthcare, DOJ, CC.

Fraud alert! California Hospital Pays $10.25M to Resolve Whistleblower Suit Alleging Medically Unnecessary Inpatient Admissions and Kickbacks

On December 12, the DOJ announced that California’s Oroville Hospital will pay $10,250,000 to the United States and the State of California to resolve allegations that it submitted false claims to Medicare and Medicaid for medically unnecessary inpatient hospital admissions, a kickback and physician self-referral scheme, and the use of incorrect diagnosis codes to maximize reimbursements. Oroville Hospital will pay $9,518,954 to the federal government and $731,046 to the State of...

DaVita – Healthcare Fraud/Kickbacks ($34.5 million)

Constantine Cannon represented a whistleblower alleging Denver-based provider of dialysis services DaVita Inc. violated the False Claims Act and Anti-Kickback Statute by paying physicians for referring patients to DaVita’s dialysis centers and paying a competitor for referrals to DaVita Rx, a former subsidiary that provided pharmacy services for dialysis patients.  In July 2024, DaVita agreed to settle the matter for roughly $34.5 million.  The whistleblower received roughly 18.5% of the government’s recovery.  Read more...

Texas Pharmacy Owner Sentenced for Illegal Kickbacks and Money Laundering in $59M Settlement

In a recent case of healthcare fraud, a pharmacy owner from Fort Worth, Texas, has been sentenced to four years and four months in prison and has been ordered to pay over $59 million in restitution for his role in an alleged illegal kickback and money laundering scheme. Specifically, the allegations of fraud involved TRICARE, the federal program that provides health insurance benefits to active and retired military service members...

Healthcare Fraud Jury Verdict Demonstrates DOJ’s Commitment to Prosecuting Kickbacks

Very few cases ever filed reach jury trial. The vast majority are dismissed or settle long before that stage. This trend is particularly true for cases filed under the False Claims Act (FCA), where defendants face treble damages and penalties if they are found liable at trial.  In FCA trials where the Government and/or whistleblower prevails, the judge, unbeknownst to the jury, is required to triple the amount of compensatory...

Recent Settlements Show Kickbacks are Always a DOJ Enforcement Priority

The Department of Justice regularly highlights the areas of fraudulent conduct it intends to target as enforcement priorities.  These identified enforcement priorities tend to cover burgeoning areas of fraud or particular misbehavior especially ripe or prevalent because of the particular times we live in.  As might be expected, DOJ's current listing of priorities includes fraud related to the pandemic, opioids, the elderly, electronic health records, telehealth services, and as most...

Catch of the Week: Bayada Home Health Care Settles Kickback Allegations for $17 Million in Case Demonstrating that Kickbacks Come in Many Forms

Last week, Bayada Home Health Care, Inc., a national home health company with more than $1.5 billion in reported revenues and offices in twenty-two states, agreed to pay the United States $17 million to settle allegations that it violated the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS).  The AKS prohibits paying illegal remuneration in any form to induce business or referrals paid for with federal health care dollars, and the Bayada case demonstrates...