settle

Pediatrix settles overbilling claim for $25M
Pediatrix Medical Group, a provider of infant care in 32 states, will pay the federal government $25 million to settle a claim that the group billed Medicaid and other programs for critical neonatal care for infants who didn't need it. The fraud took place between 1996 and 1999. The group maintains that it did not overcharge Medicaid. Report

Cleveland-based University Hospitals Health System will pay $14 million to settle a whistleblower case in which doctors were accused of making improper Medicaid referrals. The scheme came to light when heart surgeon Dr. Thomas J. Kirby filed a lawsuit after losing his place on the hospital's staff. The hospital system admits to no wrongdoing in the case. 

In another whistleblower suit, nursing home chain Beverly Enterprises will have to fork over $20 million to the U.S. and …

> Officials in Florida have expanded a Web site that allows residents to compare costs of 100 common prescription drugs. Report

> Bryan, TX-based St. Joseph Regional Health Center has agreed to pay $750,000 to the U.S. government to settle DEA charges that the hospital didn't properly monitor controlled drugs. …

As investigators probe a new flare up of the bird flu virus in Indonesia, the World Health Organization meets this week to try to settle an argument over how data on new influenza infections should be shared. The move was prompted by reports that scientists and some Asian governments have sought to block access to the latest samples of the virus. Critics say new information should be shared immediately with the international scientific community to spead research and help guard against a …

Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama describe their proposal to make patient safety a key to medical malpractice reform in an article in the New England Journal of Medicine. The proposal envisions the creation of an Office of Patient Safety and Health Care Quality within the Department of Health and Human Services. A National Medical Error Disclosure and Compensation (MEDiC) program would encourage providers to report errors promptly and push claimants to settle cases quickly. Article

Tenet Healthcare said that it has reached an agreement with federal officials to settle charges that it used kickback payments to doctors to encourage them to refer patients. The hospital chain will pay a fine of $21 million. The Dallas-based provider has also agreed to either sell or shut down Alvarado Medical Center. Federal prosecutors had charged that the hospital improperly used payments to physician groups as an incentive to encourage them to refer patients. Tenet shares rallied up …

In a long-expected development, New Jersey-based pharmacy benefits manager giant Medco said it has reached a settlement with the Justice Department in a case involving three year old fraud charges against the drug distributor. Medco will pay the feds $163 million to settle the case, which was triggered by accusations by three employees at a Las Vegas distribution center who claimed the company routinely underfilled prescriptions, changed doctor's orders and canceled them completely in …

The Wall Street Journal profiles a new UnitedHealth pilot billing program designed to pay providers quickly and encourage customers to settle their bills promptly. Under the company's new "OnePay" plan, UnitedHealth will reimburse providers at the time of a patient visit. The health plan will then act as creditor, receiving payments plus interest directly from patients. Monthly payments will be deducted from a health savings account, if a consumer has signed up for one, or …

Guidant said it will settle a lawsuit filed by the family of Joshua Oukrop, a 21-year-old Minnesota man who died after his defibrillator failed. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. The Oukrop story, first reported by The New York Times, led to a series of major recalls and a formal investigation by federal authorities. The device maker has since restructured its merger with Johnson & Johnson at a marked down price. Guidant said it faces about 45 similar …

The Providence Health system became the first non-profit hospital chain to settle charges that it failed to meet its obligation to provide charity care. The chain said it is has reached an agreement which will see it compensate uninsured patients who paid higher rates for treatment. The settlement is said to impact at least 10,000 low-income patients in Oregon. Mississippi-based attorney Dick Scruggs is involved in similar lawsuits against non-profit hospitals in 27 states. Scruggs gained …