The government has recovered a lot of money from scammers this year.
The Department of Justice has recovered $3.5 billion in settlements in fraud cases in 2015.
Many of the fraud cases involved the healthcare industry: $1.9 billion were awarded in fraud cases involving healthcare companies.
From Becker’s Hospital Review:
1. Hospitals were involved in nearly $330 million in settlements and judgments this past year.
2. One of the significant settlements highlighted by the DOJ was a $250 million deal it reached with 457 hospitals across the nation to settle allegations related to cardiac devices that were implanted in Medicare patients in violation of Medicare coverage requirements.
3. Two of the largest healthcare recoveries in FY 2015 involved Denver-based DaVita Healthcare Partners.
4. DaVita paid $450 million to resolve allegations it knowingly generated unnecessary waste in administering the drugs Zemplar and Venofer to dialysis patients, and then billed the government for costs that could have been avoided. DaVita paid an additional $350 million to resolve claims it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to physicians to induce patient referrals.
5. Several healthcare industry settlements involved violations of Stark Law. The DOJ offered details on a few of the significant Stark Law settlements, including Altamonte Springs, Fla.-based Adventist Health System’s agreement to pay $118.7 million to the federal government and four states.
6. Claims involving the pharmaceutical industry accounted for $96 million in settlements and judgments in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30.
7. Including this past year’s $1.9 billion, the DOJ has recovered nearly $16.5 billion in healthcare fraud settlements and judgments since January 2009.
Whistleblowers who exposed fraud also received $330 million from judgments in healthcare fraud cases.
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