In recent months, Executive Orders issued by the current Administration regarding gender-affirming care of minors have been the subject of much debate and litigation. The crux of these lawsuits is largely two Executive Orders: Executive Order 14187 (Protecting Children From Chemical and Surgical Mutilation) and Executive Order 14168 (Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and
Litigation
Provider and Beneficiaries Conspired to Defraud Louisiana’s Medicaid Program
Healthcare fraud is prevalent within state Medicaid programs due to the massive amounts of money flowing through the system. In Louisiana, the Estate of Yolanda Burnom and her former company, Community Healthcare Solutions, LLC, recently agreed to pay $4.6 million to settle a False Claims Act lawsuit.
The allegations included providing incentives to Medicaid beneficiaries…
TRICARE Administrator Pays $11 Million Under FCA for Cybersecurity Noncompliance
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on February 18 that Health Net Federal Services, LLC and its corporate parent, Centene Corporation, agreed to pay $11,253,400 to resolve False Claims Act (FCA) claims. Health Net, a federal contractor responsible for administering TRICARE, allegedly falsely certified compliance with cybersecurity requirements in its contract with the U.S.
Online DME Company Billed Insurers for Unnecessary Medical Supplies
DMERx, an online DME platform, served as the basis for a massive fraud against Medicare and other insurers. Gregory Schreck, a Kansas man who was the vice president of DMERx, orchestrated a sophisticated fraud scheme to bill Medicare and other insurers over $1 billion, resulting in payments of over $350 million. The scheme used DMERx’s…
Hospital CEO Jailed for Conspiracy to Violate AKS
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on January 15 that Jeffrey Paul Madison, the former chief executive officer of a Texas hospital, was sentenced to 36 months in federal prison for conspiring to violate the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS). In October 2024, Madison also agreed to pay over $5.3 million to settle allegations under the…
FCA Delivers: Government Recovered $2.9 Billion in 2024
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recovered $2.9 billion under the False Claims Act (FCA) in 2024, a 5% bump from 2023. This total represents the most recovered since 2021 and reaffirms the FCA’s central role in the government’s anti-fraud efforts.
The DOJ entered 558 FCA settlements and judgments, the second highest total after 2023’s…
Owners of Transportation Company Defrauded Medicaid of $3.8M
The New York State Attorney General’s Office announced on December 5 that Muhammad Rizwan Khan, Muhammad Usman Khan and Farhan Khan and their Orange County-based transportation companies, Tristate Express NY, Inc., Meditrans NY Inc. and Empire Trans NY Inc., pleaded guilty to various felony grand larceny charges in connection with a fraudulent scheme that resulted…
LI Doctor Pleads Guilty to $900K Fraud Scheme
Kenneth Fishberger, a Long Island internist with nearly 50 years of medical experience, recently pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud. Prosecutors revealed that from 2013 to 2019, Fishberger ordered hundreds of medically unnecessary transcranial doppler (TCD) brain scans in exchange for kickbacks.
In this scheme, Fishberger collaborated with a salesperson and a principal…
Third-party biller fraud may hook your practice, unless you protect yourself
A November 25 article in Part B News, “Third-party biller fraud may hook your practice, unless you protect yourself,” discussed the federal government’s recent fraud investigation of a medical biller in New York State and healthcare providers’ obligation to ensure the accuracy of their claims billing. Rivkin Radler’s Jeff Kaiser was quoted…
Elevance Health Sues HHS and CMS Over Star Ratings System
On October 31, Elevance Health filed suit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to challenge the 2025 Star Ratings system used for Medicare Advantage and Part D plans. CMS published the final Star Ratings to the public on October 10 through the…
