The first quarter of 2022 brought news of several noteworthy False Claims Act (FCA) settlements, including several settlements by physicians regarding arrangements deemed to be unlawful kickbacks and the first settlement under the Department of Justice’s Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative. This post summarizes key settlements of interest to healthcare providers and government contractors.

Physicians and Hospitals

• On January 12, six medical practices and their physician-owner agreed to pay more than $7.4 million to resolve liability under the False Claims Act for claims wrongfully submitted to federal healthcare programs for acupuncture treatment. The government alleged that because Medicare and the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program do not reimburse for acupuncture treatments, the defendants billed those procedures under an incorrect CPT code to receive payment. The defendants also agreed to a Corporate Integrity Agreement as part of their settlement.
• On January 20, seven Texas physicians and a hospital CEO agreed to pay a total of more than $1.1 million to resolve allegations that they violated the Anti-Kickback Statute and Stark Law. The physicians were alleged to have received illegal remuneration from management services organizations in exchange for ordering laboratory tests. The payments to the physicians were allegedly disguised as investment returns but were in fact based on the doctors’ referral volumes. The hospital CEO was also excluded from participation in...

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