The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Tuesday that Physician Partners of America, along with its founder and former chief medical officer, have agreed to pay $24.5 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations.
According to a DOJ press release, the medical group allegedly billed federal healthcare programs for unnecessary medical testing and services, including telemedicine; paid unlawful remuneration to its physician employees; and made a false statement in connection with a loan obtained through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program.
"Billing federal healthcare programs for services that providers know are unnecessary or unreasonable undermines the quality of care that patients receive and increases the costs of these taxpayer-funded programs," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, in a statement.
"The department is committed to ensuring that healthcare providers base their treatment decisions on their patients’ needs rather than their own financial interests," Boynton added.
WHY IT MATTERS
As outlined in the settlement agreement, PPOA is accused of using telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic to allegedly try and compensate for revenue lost from elective services.
"During the global COVID-19 pandemic, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis ordered a pause on all nonemergency medical procedures effective March 20, 2020," said the DOJ in the agreement. "Shortly...
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