The U.S. Justice Department has filed a civil fraud suit against Columbia-based Family Medicine Centers of South Carolina, one of the state's largest primary care physician groups, alleging the practice illegally hiked up medical bills by adding unnecessary charges for patient visits, according to The State.
Many of the alleged charges include those for blood and liver tests to older patients on Medicare. Subsequently, the federal healthcare program paid more than $9 million in improper payments to Family Medicine Centers of South Caroline, "many of which were medically unnecessary," the government's lawsuit against the practice reads, according to the report.
The government's lawsuit joins an initial civil action against the physician practice that was brought by a physician who previously worked there, according to the report.
Catherine Schaefer, MD, was fired from the practice in 2013 after bringing her allegations about its billing procedures to the attention of federal fraud attorneys in the U.S. Attorney's office in Columbia, according to the report. The federal attorneys investigated her allegations for months to evaluate the level of fraud potentially committed by the practice.
In a prepared statement released May 19, Family Medicine Centers Medical Director Stephen Serbin, MD, said, "This civil lawsuit was brought by a disgruntled former employee who was terminated after spending less than nine months at FMSC. Our practice firmly denies all of the allegations in this lawsuit, and will vigorously defend it. FMSC has always placed the interests of our patients above any self-interest, and maintains its commitment to the families of South Carolina."