In February, Julian Omidi, 49, a former physician, and Dr. Mirali Zarrabi, 55, were charged with multiple counts of fraud in regard to a scheme surrounding their business, 1-800-GET-THIN. Two corporations, partly controlled by Omidi, were also named in the 37-count federal indictment, Surgery Center Management, LLC (SCM) and Independent…
The federal government’s False Claims Act (FCA) case against United Health Group (UHG) continues after major developments. In the case of U.S. ex rel. Benjamin Poehling v. UnitedHealth Group, Inc., The U.S. District Court in the Central District of California dismissed half of the claims brought through the initial qui…
While qui tam cases brought under the False Claims Act (FCA) are often related to health care, qui tam cases can be in connection to any type of claim made to the federal government for payment. In addition to the health care industry, defense contractors are another area in which…
In January 2018, the California Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) suspended 18 medical providers. These providers, many of whom are physicians, can no longer work in the state’s workers’ compensation system due to the loss of their medical license, criminal conduct, or fraud. DWC Require to Suspend Certain Providers AB…
Jimmy and Ashley Collins, a married couple from Tennessee, have been charged with operating a health care fraud scheme that unlawfully caused TRICARE to reimburse more than $65 million in funds. TRICARE is the federal health care program for U.S. military members, veterans, and their dependents. The Collins conspired with…
Two California urologists, Dr. Aytac Apaydin and Dr. Stephen Worsham, have agreed to pay $1.085 million based on allegations of violating the False Claim Act, the Anti-Kickback Statute, and Stark Law, which prohibits physician self-referral, between April 2008 and December 2014. Apaydin and Worsham currently own and run Salinas Valley…
Scripps Health, a San Diego-based health care system, will pay $1.5 million to resolve allegations of False Claims Act (FCA) violations. Scripps is accused of seeking reimbursements from federal health care programs for physical therapy services rendered by therapists who lacked billing privileges. If you have any information regarding an…
On January 12, the former owner of Pacific Hospital in Long Beach, California was sentenced to 63 months in prison. The owner, Michael D. Drobot, 73, was charged with crimes related to running a 15-year health care fraud scheme. In 2014, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy and paying illegal kickbacks…
Kmart Corporation, a subsidiary of Sears Holding Corporation, will pay the federal government $32.3 million to settle allegations of violations of the False Claims Act. A whistleblower alleged that Kmart stores did not report discounted prescription drug prices to Medicare Part D, Medicaid, and TRICARE, thereby receiving larger reimbursements than…
The operator and two employees of a former medical supply company in Hawthorne and Ventura, California have been arrested by special agents of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) for health care fraud. The allegations state that…