St. Francis allegedly made false claims to Medicare and TRICARE with unlawful deal between St. Francis and Piedmont Orthopedic Associates
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GREENVILLE, S.C. — A Greenville health care system will pay the federal government $36.5 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act, the Federal Stark Law, and the Federal Anti-Kickback Statue.
St. Francis Physician Services, Inc., St. Francis Hospital, and Bon Secours St. Francis Health System, Inc., (collectively, “St. Francis”), owner and operator of the St. Francis healthcare system, a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization in Greenville allegedly made payments to orthopedic surgeons that were tied to the volume or value of referrals. The settlement resolves allegations that St. Francis caused the submission of false claims to Medicare and TRICARE as a result of an unlawful payment structure between St. Francis and Piedmont Orthopedic Association (POA). Specifically, it is alleged that St. Francis’s bonus payments to POA physicians violated both the Stark Law and the AKS.
The Stark Law, or the Physician Self-Referral Law, prohibits physicians from referring patients to receive "designated health services" payable by Medicare or Medicaid from entities with which the physician or an immediate family member has a financial relationship.
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