In July 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York dismissed a False Claims Act complaint filed by CKD Project, LLC, an entity created for the purpose of filing the lawsuit, which alleged that Fresenius violated the federal Anti-Kickback Statute by over-paying physicians for a majority interest in certain dialysis centers in exchange for the physicians’ continued referrals.
Fresenius moved to dismiss the claims under the False Claims Act’s public disclosure bar on the grounds that it previously disclosed the material elements of its joint-venture model for purchasing dialysis centers in its SEC filings. The district court agreed, dismissing the complaint and denying CKD leave to amend.
On appeal, CKD argued that the SEC filings did not disclose certain “important information” about the transactions, like that Fresenius allegedly (1) allocated most of the purchase price to “goodwill” and (2) required the physicians to execute non-compete agreements, or that the contracts allegedly included warranty provisions about the number of patients at the centers. But, the Second Circuit agreed that the “material elements” of the acquisitions—including that Fresenius utilized non-competes, seller warranties, and purchased intangible assets like goodwill—were disclosed in Fresenius’s SEC filings, landing CKD’s claims within the public disclosure bar. The Second Circuit also concluded that CKD could not avoid dismissal as an “original source” because the...
BRENTWOOD, Tenn. (WSMV) - A Tennessee doctor has pleaded guilty to committing millions of dollars’ worth of Medicare fraud through her Brentwood optometry practice. Helen Boerman, 48, pleaded guilt...