Friday, August 31, 2007

NJ Podiatrist Pleads Guilty to Medicare Fraud

Dr. Ming C. Tung of East Brunswick, NJ has pleaded guilty to defrauding the Medicare program.  He will pay $1.2 million as part of a civil settlement and restitution.

Tung admitted that he fraudulently billed Medicare between 2001 and 2005 for routine foot care services, knowing that he was not entitled to receive payment, He would make it appear that most of his patients suffered from podiatric problems such as diabetes, which would require necessary foot care services such as toenail clipping and foot massage.

Tung also admitted to falsely claiming that he had performed more complex, time-consuming services than he actually provided, such as the removal of infected toenails.  He also obtained reimbursements for home visits when they were not medically necessary.

Tung will be sentenced on December 7, and faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.  Tung also entered into a civil settlement of $868,313 for violations of the federal False Claims Act, which allows recovery of triple the amount of damages to the government plus penalties.

Click here to read the whole article about NJ Podiatrist Admits Defrauding Medicare.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Texas Judge Allows Medicare Fraud Suit to Proceed

Federal Judge T. John Ward of the Eastern District of Texas in Marshall has denied a motion by the East Texas Medical Center (ETMC) Regional Healthcare System to dismiss a case brought by realtor Linnea Rose.  Rose’s whistle-blower case, filed in June 2005, alleges that the ETMC intentionally and systematically abused the federal Medicaid matching program.  Rose contents that the ETMC received millions of dollars of federal Medicaid matching funds to which the hospital was not entitled.

The hospital’s court action had asserted that Rose was ineligible to file this suit as the information she used had been heard in Authority Board discussions, which the hospital argued were administrative proceedings. 

The hospital maintains that this is a frivolous lawsuit.

Click here to read the full article, Athens, Texas hospital faces Medicare Fraud Suit.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Judge Rejects Appeal to Dismiss U. of Phoenix Lawsuit

The University of Phoenix, which is being sued for alleged fraud, has failed to have its case dismissed.  Two former admissions recruiters claim that the University obtained billions of dollars in student-aid money while violating federal policies on recruiter compensation.

In 2004 the University settled a lawsuit with the U.S. Department of Education.  The University had hoped that this settlement would render the current complaint moot.  The two whistle-blowers and the U.S. Department of Education argued that the settlement did not constitute an “alternate remedy” required under the False Claims Act because it was never approved by the U.S. attorney general.

Click here to read the full article in the Chronicle of Higher Education.

Monday, August 20, 2007

ConocoPhillips Unit to pay $97.5 M for Royalty Underpay

CNN.com is reporting that Burlington Resources Inc., a subsidiary of ConocoPhillips, has agreed to pay $97.5 M to settle allegations that it underpaid royalties owed on natural gas produced from federal and Indian leases.

The settlement resolves allegations under the False Claims Act that Burlington systematically underreported the value of natural gas that it produced on federal and Indian leases between 1998 and 2005.  Additionally, Burlington paid less royalties than it owed to the U.S. government and various Indian tribes.

Click here to read the article on CNN.com, ConocoPhillips Settles Royalty Underpay.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

PwC and IBM Settle $5.3 Million False Claims Suit

PricewaterhouseCoopers and IBM Corp. have agreed to pay nearly $5.3 million combined to settle allegations that they made improper payments on government technology contracts.  Neither company has admitted any guilt in the settlement.

The lawsuit was originally filed by Normal Rille and Neal Roberts under qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  Rille and Roberts allege that the companies solicited, paid money, or provided other benefits to other companies to secure government tech contracts. 

The settlement is part of a larger, continuing federal investigation of three technology companies that also allegedly provided kickbacks in return for government contracts.  These companies are Sun Microsystems Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co., and Accenture Ltd.

Click here to read the LA Times Article about PricewaterhouseCoopers and IBM Settle False Claims Suit.

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