Health care providers in Koreatown and Northridge have agreed to pay more than $62 million to settle allegations that they caused the submission of false diagnosis codes for two spinal conditions to increase payments from the Medicare Advantage program, officials announced Wednesday.
Seoul Medical Group Inc. and its subsidiary Advanced Medical Management Inc., headquartered in Koreatown, will pay $58.74 million and their former president and majority owner, Dr. Min Young Cha, has agreed to pay $1.76 million for allegedly violating the False Claims Act by causing the submission of false diagnosis codes, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Renaissance Imaging Medical Associates Inc., a Northridge-based radiology group that worked with Seoul Medical, has also agreed to pay $2.35 million for allegedly conspiring with Seoul Medical Group in connection with the false diagnoses for the two spinal conditions.
“Medicare Advantage is a vital program for our seniors and the government expects health care providers who participate in the program to provide truthful and accurate information,” Acting Assistant Attorney General Yaakov Roth of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Division said in a statement.
“Today’s result sends a clear message to the Medicare Advantage community that the United States will zealously pursue appropriate action against those who knowingly submit false claims for taxpayer funds,” Roth added.
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