Bradley Nurkin filed suit in 2011 under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provision of the False Claims Act, and the government intervened in the case in December 2013. The suit alleged Naples, Fla.-based HMA paid kickbacks for physician referrals and billed for inpatient services that should have been billed as observation or outpatient cases. The government secured a $262 million settlement with HMA in 2018.
A Florida federal court ruled Feb. 8 that Mr. Nurkin’s fee recovery was proper under the lodestar method for calculating reasonable billing rates. The $959,713 in fees fell short of the $12 million Mr. Nurkin had requested under a contingency methodology. The court said the $12 million would have been grossly excessive, and the contingency methodology isn’t available under the False Claims Act, according to the report.
More articles on legal and regulatory issues:
CEO gets 15 years in prison for $150M healthcare fraud
Former Massachusetts healthcare executive charged in $100M fraud scheme
Tenet must pay whistleblowing cardiologists $10M, court rules
Becker’s 3rd Annual Fall Chief Pharmacy Officer Summit is the top tier event that the people leading the future of pharmacy convene. This 3-day event is built specifically for Chief Pharmacy Officers and senior pharmacy leaders. The sessions examine the workforce, financial and clinical priorities shaping pharmacy today. Becker’s is where candid discussions flourish and new ideas thrive. Becker's 3rd Annual Fall Chief Pharmacy Officer Summit
