Medstar strikes $12.7M deal to settle whistle-blower allegations

Medstar Ambulance has agreed to pay $12.7 million to resolve allegations that the company knowingly submitted false claims to Medicare, according to the Department of Justice.

The allegations against Medstar were initially filed in a lawsuit by Dale Meehan, a former employee in Medstar's billing office, under the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, according to the DOJ. Mr. Meehan will receive approximately $3.5 million.

 

Medstar allegedly violated the False Claims Act when the Massachusetts-based company submitted routinely billed for ambulance services that did not qualify for reimbursement because the transports "were not medically reasonable and necessary, billed for higher levels of services than were required by patients' conditions, and billed for higher levels of services than were actually provided." The alleged billing violations occurred from Jan. 1, 2011, through Oct. 31, 2014, according to the DOJ.

 

As part of the settlement, Medstar agreed to a corporate integrity agreement with HHS, the DOJ said.

 

More articles on healthcare industry lawsuits:

Appeals court reduces judgment against HCA to $188M in breach of contract suit
Norman Regional Health System in Oklahoma accused of billing fraud
CHS executives ink $60M settlement in investor suit


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