The following lawsuits and settlements involving hospitals were reported within the last 30 days, beginning with the most recent.
1. FTC Wins Appeal, ProMedica Must Divest St. Luke's
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the Federal Trade Commission and ordered Toledo, Ohio-based ProMedica to divest Maumee, Ohio-based St. Luke's Hospital on the basis of competition violations.
2. HMA's Medical Center of Southeastern Oklahoma to Pay $1.5M in False Claims Settlement
The Medical Center of Southeastern Oklahoma in Durant, and its parent company, Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates, agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle allegations the hospital billed the Oklahoma Medicaid program for surgical procedures that were not medically necessary.
3. 2 Ohio Valley Healthcare Providers to Pay $1M to Settle False Claims Allegations
St. Clairsville, Ohio-based Belmont Cardiology and its president, Devender Batra, MD, agreed to pay $1 million for their involvement in East Ohio Regional Hospital in St. Martins Ferry and Wheeling, W.Va.-based Ohio Valley Medical Center submitting false claims for prohibited referrals to Medicare.
4. Judge Recommends Throwing Out One Claim in $522M FCA Case
U.S Magistrate Judge Sonja F. Bivens recommended one of the six claims against Mobile, Ala.-based Diagnostic Physicians Group be thrown out because the government had not presented sufficient evidence to support the claim.
5. All Children's Hospital, Pediatric Physician Services, All Children's Health System to Pay $7M to Settle Stark Law Violations
All Children's Hospital, Pediatric Physician Services and All Children's Health System, three St. Petersburg, Fla.-based organizations, settled a whistle-blower lawsuit brought under the False Claims Act for $7 million.
6. Tuomey Ordered to Pay $70M While Waiting On Appeal
A federal district court in South Carolina ordered Sumter, S.C.-based Tuomey Healthcare System to pay $70 million to delay payment on the $237 million judgment previously entered against it until an appeal of the case is completed.
7. 9 Whistle-Blower Cases Filed Against HMA Transferred to D.C.
Nine qui tam False Claims Act suits accusing Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates and several of its subsidiaries of paying illegal kickbacks to physicians and encouraging medically unnecessary tests were transferred to a Washington, D.C., federal court.
8. Erlanger Medical Center Kickback Suit Dismissed Due to Previous Public Disclosures
A Tennessee federal judge dismissed a whistle-blower's False Claims Act claim against Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Erlanger Medical Center, ruling the suit was barred due to previous public disclosures about the alleged kickback agreements involved.
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