From an ex-hospital CFO being charged with grand theft to a physician who billed Medicare for 24-hour workdays being convicted of fraud, here are the latest healthcare industry lawsuits and settlements making headlines.
1. ACLU hits Trinity Health with lawsuit alleging EMTALA violations
The American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit against Livonia, Mich.-based Trinity Health for refusing to provide emergency abortions to women whose incomplete miscarriages put them at high risk of serious complications.
2. Ex-hospital CFO charged with grand theft
Standpoint, Idaho-based Bonner General Health's former CFO is charged with grand theft for allegedly embezzling approximately $225,000 from the hospital.
3. Bozeman Health Services board sues search firm for selecting CEO with criminal record
Bozeman (Mont.) Health Services filed a lawsuit against Kansas City, Mo.-based Gallaher MSA Search for failing to identify felony theft convictions on the record of the hospital's recently fired president and CEO, Kevin Pitzer.
4. Physician who billed Medicare for 24-hour workdays convicted of fraud
A jury found a suburban Detroit physician guilty of healthcare fraud and controlled substance distribution.
5. Delaware hospital to pay $4M to settle improper billing case
St. Francis Hospital in Wilmington, Del., agreed to pay the federal government and the state of Delaware more than $4 million to resolve improper billing issues.
6. Ex-UPMC supervisor pleads guilty in fraud case
A former supervisor in the claims department at Pittsburgh-based UPMC pleaded guilty to mail fraud charges in connection with a scheme that involved submitting 156 false billing statements on the UPMC system and receiving payments totaling more than $184,000.
7. Massachusetts General Hospital to pay record settlement over drug thefts
Boston-based Massachusetts General Hospital agreed to pay a record $2.3 million settlement to resolve allegations its lax drug supply controls allowed two nurses to steal approximately 15,921 pain pills.
8. Ohio physician convicted of performing unnecessary heart procedures
A Westlake, Ohio-based cardiologist, Harold Persaud, MD, was convicted of performing unnecessary catheterizations, test and stent insertions and causing unnecessary coronary artery bypass surgeries as part of a scheme to overbill Medicare and private insurers by $7.2 million.
9. Patients file lawsuit against 2 D.C. hospitals, alleging excessive fees to obtain electronic records
MedStar Georgetown University Hospital and George Washington University Hospital, both based in the District of Columbia, are being sued by three patients who allege they were charged excessively and illegally to obtain copies of their EMRs.
10. LSU sues group that manages Shreveport, Monroe hospitals
Shreveport-based Louisiana State University filed a lawsuit Sept. 25 against Biomedical Research Foundation, the private manager of two LSU hospitals.
11. Washington attorney general hits SEIU with campaign finance complaint
The Washington attorney general filed a campaign finance complaint against Service Employees International Healthcare Union No. 775, alleging the union failed to properly file reports of in-kind and financial contributions as required by the state's campaign finance laws.
12. Former Army physician to serve 2.5 years in prison for healthcare fraud
A former army surgeon was sentenced to federal prison for his role in a $7.3 million scam.
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