Grant Memorial Hospital in Petersburg, W.Va., has agreed to pay a $320,175 settlement for submitting false medical claims to insurers, the U.S. Justice Department said Feb. 24.
The settlement resolves allegations that Grant Memorial Hospital improperly billed Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare, the VA and Railroad Retirement Programs for services that noncredentialed physicians provided. The hospital recognized the billing issue and self-reported it to authorities, according to a Justice Department news release.
"This case was the result of the hospital recognizing the mistake and bringing it to the attention of the federal government. I commend the hospital management for ensuring that this wrong was righted. All medical providers should take note, and when a mistake in billing is made, report the issue immediately," U.S. Attorney Bill Powell said in the news release.
The improper billing took place from September 2014 to March 2016, according to the news release. The claims were for outpatient and inpatient services and items using the National Provider Identifier number and name of a credentialed physician, when the services were provided by a noncredentialed physician.