A Washington physician has been charged in a $14 million fraudulent medical supply scheme that targeted Medicare and Tricare members in five states, the Justice Department said Dec. 4. 

From a California hospital filing an antitrust lawsuit against Optum to Johns Hopkins All Children's Hospital seeking a retrial in a case made famous by a Netflix documentary, here are 10 hospital lawsuits, settlements and legal developments Becker's has reported since Nov. 20:

A former executive of Little River Healthcare — a critical access hospital in Rockdale, Texas, — and three physicians have agreed to pay $880,199 between them to resolve False Claims Act allegations, including alleged violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute. 

Two U.S. senators say it's time for U.S. Anesthesia Partners and its parent company, Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, a private equity firm, to pay the piper following the Federal Trade Commission's anticompetitive scheme lawsuit in late September.

A superior court judge ordered Alan Germany, former CFO of Health Care Conglomerate Associates, to write an apology letter and pay $150,000 in restitution as part of a plea agreement in relation to charges that included embezzlement, conflict of interest and using his official position for personal gain, the Valley Voice reported Dec. 2.

President Joe Biden is preparing a package of second-term healthcare measures after contenders for the Republican presidential nomination suggested they plan to replace the Affordable Care Act. 

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said he aims to "replace and supersede" the Affordable Care Act if successful in the 2024 presidential election, making him one more candidate returning focus to the healthcare law after its spell of quiet in politics. 

A former security guard at Banner University Medical Center-Phoenix was arrested Nov. 28 after he was accused of committing sexual acts on the body of a deceased 79-year-old woman in the hospital's morgue. 

In a victory for hospitals and medical equipment manufacturer Becton Dickinson, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled Nov. 30 that these entities cannot be sued for privacy violations over requiring nurses to scan their fingerprints when accessing medicine for distribution. 

HHS' Office of Inspector General recovered over $3 billion in fraudulent payments in 2023, according to the agency's semiannual report to Congress. 

The co-owner and CEO of a Louisiana diagnostic laboratory was indicted for his alleged role in a scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid of more than $148 million in unnecessary testing. 

Novo Nordisk has sued about a dozen spas, clinics and pharmacies, over unapproved versions of semaglutide, the active ingredient for its Type 2 diabetes drug Ozempic and weight loss therapy Wegovy. 

Following a seven-week trial, five defendants, including hospital and laboratory executives, have been found guilty in a kickback conspiracy. 

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has filed suit against Pfizer, accusing the drugmaker of misrepresenting the efficacy of its COVID-19 vaccine.

Two employees of Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital in Baltimore were victims of two separate armed carjacking incidents this week in the hospital parking lot, the hospital confirmed in a statement shared with Becker's.

Police arrested a 21-year-old man who allegedly assaulted Gardner, Mass.-based Heywood Hospital staff, EMS and a civilian before stealing an ambulance, eventually crashing it, Boston25 News reported Nov. 29.

Three defendants will face a jury trial in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., starting Nov. 29 for their role in a coordinated scheme to sell thousands of fraudulent diplomas and transcripts to aspiring nurses, which enabled them to sit for the National Council Licensure Examination without completing the necessary coursework. 

In its decision to recommend the repeal of certificate of need laws, a Georgia Senate committee made up of lawmakers, healthcare executives, and an insurance industry representative is looking to South Carolina, which signed its certificate of need repeal in October 2023, as a model.

Former President Donald Trump is taking to social media to renew calls for the replacement of the Affordable Care Act after a stretch of time in which the healthcare law was not a central issue in U.S. political campaigns. 

A lawsuit has been filed against Klamath Falls, Ore.-based Sky Lakes Medical Center alleging the hospital violated charity care requirements, The Lund Report reported Nov. 28.