“U.S. cardiology practices have faced repeated accusations of defrauding government healthcare programs; this settlement exemplifies providers profiting at taxpayer expense.”
NEW YORK, Dec. 21, 2024 — The Department of Justice settled 16 False Claims Act whistleblower lawsuits against cardiologists across a dozen states, who allegedly committed healthcare fraud.
Similar accusations against hundreds more cardiologists will proceed to litigation in a significant qui tam lawsuit filed under the False Claims Act (FCA).
The lawsuit alleges that these cardiologists significantly overbilled the government for radiopharmaceuticals used in standard cardiology tests. The whistleblowers are represented by Dan Miller, Jonathan DeSantis, and Samuel Rogers from and Henry Furst from the Law Office of Henry Furst.
“U.S. cardiology practices have faced repeated accusations of defrauding government healthcare programs; this settlement exemplifies providers profiting at taxpayer expense. Taxpayers will now recover some funds, and this should deter similar illegal activity,” stated , a partner at Walden Macht Haran & Williams LLP (WMHW) representing the whistleblowers. “Whistleblowers are crucial to the financial health of government healthcare programs, encouraging anyone witnessing illegal activity to speak up.”
The lawsuit alleges Medicare fraud. Cardiologists utilize radiopharmaceuticals in nuclear stress testing. In relevant Medicare jurisdictions, providers must bill Medicare for radiopharmaceuticals based on their purchase price. The suit claims that the cardiologists submitted reimbursement claims to Medicare far exceeding their actual costs, resulting in millions of dollars in overpayments.
The settling defendants will pay a total of $17,761,564. The qui tam whistleblowers represented by WMHW – two cardiologists who reported the overbilling – will receive over $2.7 million from the settlements. Litigation will continue against the hundreds of other defendants named in the lawsuit.
The case is United States ex rel. Walia v. Aaron et al. (D.D.C), No. 18-cv-00510-RJL, in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The claims alleged are merely accusations, and no liability has been determined.
Walden Macht Haran & Williams LLP is a leading qui tam law firm. Led by former prosecutors and , their work has recovered over $3 billion for state and federal treasuries, including numerous cases initially rejected by the government.
SOURCE Walden Macht Haran & Williams LLP