Alpharetta, Ga.-based Sweet Dreams Nurse Anesthesia has agreed to pay more than $1 million to resolve allegations it violated the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute by paying kickbacks to healthcare providers for referrals, according to the Department of Justice.
The government alleged Sweet Dreams provided free anesthesia drugs to ambulatory surgery centers in exchange for an exclusive contract to provide anesthesia services at those ASCs. A Sweet Dreams affiliate also allegedly agreed to fund the construction of an ASC in Marietta, Ga., in exchange for exclusive contracts to provide anesthesia services at the ASC and its affiliates.
The allegations against Sweet Dreams were originally brought under the qui tam, or whistle-blower, provisions of the False Claims Act, according to the DOJ.
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