WHISTLEBLOWERS COLLECT BIG IN 2013 – ORTHOPEDICS TOP “STARK” JUDGMENT (Orthopedics This Week)
The year 2013 was another banner year for healthcare whistleblowers. The year also included the largest judgment in the history of the Stark Law with Tuomey Healthcare System, Inc. ordered to cough up $237 million.
According to the Department of Justice (DOJ), the government paid out more than $345 million to “courageous” individuals who exposed fraud and false claims by filing a qui tam complaint. The government recovered a total of $2.6 billion from those lawsuits.
It was the fourth straight year that DOJ recovered more than $2 billion in cases involving healthcare fraud.
Of the total $2.6 billion recovered, $1.8 billion was from alleged false claims for drugs and medical devices under federally insured health programs that, in addition to Medicare and Medicaid, include TRICARE, which provides benefits for military personnel and their families, veterans’ health care programs and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. The department recovered an additional $443 million for state Medicaid programs.
Orthopedics: Biggest Stark Judgment in History
The $237 million judgment against Sou...
