Possible Agreement Reached in Halifax Case

An agreement pending final approval has been reached in the second part of the lawsuit against Daytona, Fla.-based Halifax Hospital Medical Center and Halifax Staffing, according to a report from The Daytona Beach News-Journal.

The attorney representing the whistle-blower in the case said the lawsuit could potentially be resolved before trial begins, but the agreement is not final and is yet to be approved by all parties in the case, according to the report.

The Halifax Board of Commissioners is holding a meeting on July 11 to discuss litigation of the case and the possible agreement.

The agreement would resolve the second portion of a two-part lawsuit that was filed against Halifax in 2009 under the qui tam, or whistle-blower, provision of the False Claims Act, which the government later intervened in.

In its lawsuit, the government alleged Halifax knowingly violated the False Claims Act and the Stark Law by executing contracts with six medical oncologists that included improper incentive bonuses.

The government also alleged Halifax knowingly acted in violation of the law by paying three neurosurgeons more than fair market value for their work, and that the hospital admitted patients who did not need to be admitted then billed Medicare for their care.

Because of the complexity and breadth of the lawsuit, U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell agreed to split the case into two trials: one focusing on bonuses paid to the oncologists and on the alleged excessive compensation paid to the three neurosurgeons, and a second focusing on the fraudulent billing for the patients who were unnecessarily admitted to the hospital.

The first trial was scheduled to begin March 3, but just before the jury was seated Halifax and prosecutors came to a settlement agreement for $85 million.

The second trial was set to begin July 8. However, with a potential resolution reached in the case, the facts pertaining to the second trial may never be heard by a jury.

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