Serenity Hospice and Pallative Care Guilty of Hospice-Medicare Fraud

According to the Phoenix Sun, a Phoenix hospice provider will pay $2.2 Million to the federal government for falsely billing Medicare for hospice care. 

Under the agreed terms, the founder and former president Ruth Siegel agreed to be excluded from Medicare, Medicaid and other federal health programs for 5 years. She will also, personally pay $1 Million of the $2.2 Million settlement

This lawsuit was filed by a former employee Cheryl Sifford, under the false claims act. Serenity still denied the allegations, but said it was more cost effective to settle rather than fight it.

 

Here's how the system works, Medicare pays for medical care to manage symptoms and provide relief to those with a life expectancy of less than 6 months and who have decided not to seek any further treatment, but rather prepare for death. The rate Medicare pays for this service is over 4 times the rate that should have been paid for the actual services they received. Thus boosting profits for the facility.

 

Sifford claimed in a civil lawsuit filed, that Serenity flagged patients who were referred by CareMore to ensure they were admitted as hospice patients. In addition she was also instructed to take CareMore's staff to dinner, concerts and limousine rides.

Siegel has not admitted guilt, but has insisted that this settlement is the quickest and most cost effective settlement.

The whistleblower, Cheryl Sifford will collect $440,000 for her help in this case.

If you know of any such thing taking place where you work we encourage you to contact Jim VanderLinden immediately. http://www.vanderlindenlaw.com/

BP Will Be Paying for Many Years for Their Most Recent Accident

BP has agreed to pay a record $20 billion to resolve all federal and state claims against the company over its role in the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Under the terms of the finalized deal announced by the Justice Department on Monday, BP won’t have to pay all the money at once. Softening the hit to its cash flow, the company is able to spread out payments over a 15-year period. The last installments are due in 2031, more than 21 years after the Deepwater Horizon disaster, which killed 11 crew members and caused the largest oil spill in U.S. waters.

The two biggest pieces of the settlement* are the $5.5 billion in Clean Water Act penalties and the $7.1 billion that BP agreed to pay to the U.S. and Gulf Coast states to cover long-term environmental damages.

Here are the payment schedules for both categories, according to the consent decree filed in federal court in New Orleans on Monday:

Department of Justice

Department of Justice

 

Attorney General Loretta Lynch called the deal “a strong and fitting response to the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history.” BP officials, as WSJ’s Devlin Barrett notes, have said previously the agreement provides the company, and the Gulf region, “a path to closure,” resolving the largest legal exposure and providing more certainty in terms of costs and payments.

 

* Total settlement figure also includes $1 billion that BP previously committed for early restoration projects; up to $700 million for any later-discovered injuries or losses or to pay for adjustments to restoration projects; $4.9 billion to five Gulf States, plus another $1 billion to localities, to settle economic-damage claims; and $600 million to settle other claims, including reimbursement for response and removal costs.

Pfizer to pay $400 Million for Off Label Drug Marketing

According to the Jere Beasely Report a New York federal judge has granted final approval of a $400 million settlement that ends a class action accusing Pfizer Inc. of misleading investors about illegal off-label drug marketing. However, some investors may not get very much, with a recovery rate of 15 cents per share. U.S. District Judge Alvin K. Hellerstein had granted early approval of the settlement in mid-March after lawyers revised notices to class members clarifying details about the litigation.

The case, because of the settlement, has now been dismissed with prejudice. The recovery rate of 15 cents per share is far less than the $1.26 per share a damages expert for the Plaintiffs had estimated.

Pfizer put the damage per share at nothing because, the company disclosed a dividend cut to fund its purchase of Wyeth on the day of the January 2009 stock drop that was central to the lawsuit. Both sides noted in February that if fewer people claim, the recovery for claimants will grow, and institutional investors will be active, claiming most of the potential recovery.

The Plaintiffs filed their claims in 2010 after Pfizer pled guilty to illegally marketing the anti-inflammatory drug Bextra and reaching a $2.3 billion settlement with the federal government in 2009. Investors alleged that the company misled them about marketing that drug, as well as Godon, Lyrica and Zyvox, and that Pfizer concealed a kickback scheme involving payments to doctors in exchange for promotion of those drugs.

Geico Surrenders $517,000 to Settle Allegations

 

According to Top Class Actions GEICO has agreed to a $517,000 class action settlement over allegations that the insurance provider received reimbursement from a third party without first obtaining a judicial determination or an agreement with car accident victims that they were “made whole” by their settlement.

Lead plaintiff Lisa Stokes filed the GEICO class action lawsuit claiming that GEICO should have waited to obtain a “made whole” statement from insured customers before they sought reimbursement of Med Pay/PIP payments.

According to the GEICO class action, in the absence of a “made whole” agreement or judicial determination, GEICO should not have received subrogation payments.

GEICO denies any liability to Stokes and Class Members on the claims asserted in the class action lawsuit. However, the insurance company agreed to settle in order to avoid the expense and uncertainty of continued litigation.

Who’s Eligible

Class Members include individuals who received medical treatment as a result of an automobile accident and (a) who were insured under an automobile insurance policy that was issued in Arkansas by GEICO and pursuant to which GEICO made a Med Pay/PIP payment to a medical provider on behalf of the insured; and (b) who settled a bodily injury claim with a third party arising out of the automobile accident “pro se” and without the assistance of an attorney; and (c) as a result of that settlement, GEICO received a subrogation payment as reimbursement for a Med Pay/PIP payment between the dates of Nov. 1, 2008 and April 3, 2015.

Potential Award Varies.

Class Members who file a valid Claim Form will receive a payment not to exceed 100% of the amount GEICO received in Med Pay/PIP subrogation on their claim. If the number of eligible claims exceeds the amount available in the class action settlement fund, distributions will be made on a pro rata basis.

To see if you qualify go to http://topclassactions.com/lawsuit-settlements/open-lawsuit-settlements/170747-geico-auto-insurance-class-action-settlement/

Lovaza's Labeling is Incomplete--Side Effects Not Accurate

Lovaza, a prescription medicine made with omega 3 fatty acids  has recently been associated with a higher risk of  bleeding complications including subdural hematomas.

The omega-3 fatty acids found in Lovaza are the same type found in fish oil. Research for dozens of years has pointed to a link between the intake of omega-3 fatty acids and a lower risk of cardiovascular disease that can cause premature death.

Research has also shown that omega-3 fatty acids have a number of other positive effects, such as decreasing triglyceride levels, slowing the growth of atherosclerotic plague, and slightly lowering blood pressure.

However, recent studies have shown that omega-3 fatty acids also inhibit the function of platelets. Platelets are part of the process that causes proper and healthy blood clotting.

When the platelets are inhibited, bleeding time can be prolonged and therefore more dangerous. Omega-3 fatty acid supplements, including Lovaza, inhibit the function of platelets in blood clotting, which puts patients at risk of extended Lovaza bleeding complications such as subdural hematomas.

For those suffering from a subdural hematoma, excess blood collects between the layers of tissue surrounding the brain. The outermost layer of this tissue around the brain is called the dura, and the layer beneath it is called the arachnoid.

Subdural hematoma causes bleeding between the dura and the arachnoid. While subdural hematoma bleeding is not inside the brain itself, it can still negatively affect the brain.

Bleeding accumulates and pressure builds, which puts an increasing amount of pressure on the brain from outside. This pressure, if allowed to reach a very high level, can cause unconsciousness and in some cases, death.

Treatment of subdural hematomas can range from simply monitoring the condition and waiting to brain surgery. In cases where there is too much pressure on the brain, surgeons may have to perform serious operations to relieve the dangerous pressure.

Lovaza’s label, approved by the FDA, includes a warning about increased Lovaza bleeding complications with omega-3 fatty acids.

According to the American Heart Association, patients who wish to treat coronary artery disease or high triglycerides with omega-3 fatty acids may not be able to intake as much as they need in a regular diet. Therefore, the AHA recommends at least one gram of fish oil per day for coronary artery disease patients, and at least two grams per day for hypertriglyceridemia patients.

People who took Lovaza or a similar omega-3 fatty acid supplement or fish oil and have since suffered a subdural hematoma may be able to file a Lovaza lawsuit. Drug manufacturers such as GlaxoSmithKline have a legal responsibility to adequately warn consumers about the potential side effects of using their drugs.

Adventist Health Systems To Pay Out $118.7 Million

Three former employees of a North Carolina hospital were the first to expose an alleged scheme by Adventist Health System to pay doctors excessive compensation to lock in their patient referrals to Adventist-owned hospitals, clinics and other outpatient services in Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.

The US Justice Department announced today that Adventist will pay a total of $118.7 million to the federal government and four states to settle a whistleblower (qui tam) lawsuit filed in December 2012 by those former employees. The settlement agreement also covers a separate qui tam lawsuit filed in 2013 that made the same allegations as some of those made earlier in Phillips & Cohen's qui tam lawsuit.

The Adventist settlement is the largest healthcare fraud settlement ever made involving physician referrals to hospitals. It is nearly twice the previous largest settlement involving hospital kickback allegations, which was North Broward Hospital District's recent $69.5 million settlement.

It was alleged Adventist's hospitals paid doctors outrageous sums and offered overly generous benefits and lax billing oversight as part of a corporate strategy to capture and control physician referrals for inpatient and outpatient services near its hospitals. Federal law prohibits hospitals from paying doctors directly or indirectly for referrals so that doctors make recommendations for care based on what's best for the patient – not what's best for the doctor's bank account.

A substantial portion of the settlement amount is based on allegations involving Florida Hospital Medical Group, an Adventist-owned physician practice in Florida whose doctors worked at several Adventist hospitals and dozens of Adventist-owned outpatient clinics. Those hospitals include Florida Hospital Altamonte, Florida Hospital Apopka, Florida Hospital Celebration Health, Florida Hospital Kissimmee, Florida Hospital Orlando, Florida Hospital Waterman (Tavares, Fla.), Florida Hospital for Children (Orlando, Fla.) and Winter Park Memorial Hospital.

The three whistleblowers were longtime employees at Adventist's Park Ridge Health in Hendersonville, NC, where they became aware of the alleged system-wide kickback scheme. Michael Payne was a risk manager and Melissa Church was the executive director of physician services at Park Ridge. Gloria Pryor was a compliance officer for physician offices at Park Ridge.

GM Reaches Settlement

 

General Motors announced that they have reached a criminal settlement to end the current government investigation of their faulty ignition switches. GM will pay $900 million for the Department of Justice fine incurred.

Additionally, GM has reached a resolution with over half of the death and personal injury lawsuits that are a part of the current multidistrict litigation through the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. General Motors also settled in a shareholder class action lawsuit filed in the U.S. District court in Michigan for two civil lawsuits. The total for these settlements will set GM back another $575 million.

GM’s ignition switch defect caused cars to suddenly turn off when driving, most notably when the car was jostled from uneven road conditions. As well as an engine shutdown, power steering and power brakes were disabled and the airbags became deactivated. This led to numerous car accidents with severe injuries and deaths.

The MDL and shareholder class action settlements resolve about 1,380 death and personal injury lawsuits in total. GM did not release the individual settlement values paid in the various settlements.

The remaining lawsuits in the multidistrict litigation include economic loss claims, 370 injury lawsuits and 84 death lawsuits. Prior to Thursday’s announcement, GM had already agreed to offer ignition switch settlements to 124 families in death lawsuits and another 275 who were injured.

The nearly $1.5 billion GM is faced with in fines and settlements so far for the defect does not include the cost of fixing the 2.6 million vehicles that have been recalled due to the GM ignition switch defect.

Some consumers oppose how the situation was handled under the law. The Justice Department was criticized for not bringing charges against individual GM employees who were believed to have direct responsibility. In general, this criticism has extended to the DOJ in general for going after companies in general rather than prosecuting individuals for their wrongdoing.

When the GM scandal first came to light over a year ago, the company fired 15 employees for failing to resolve the ignition switch problem.

As it stands, there is no law that deals with criminal penalties for auto makers failing to disclose safety problems, so broader laws such as wire fraud and false statements are used.

According to court documents, GM knew of the ignition switch problem a decade ago in 2004 and 2005. Rather than making a simple and inexpensive change in the part at the time, which was estimated to cost approximately a dollar per vehicle, the situation was overlooked.

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara summarized the situation, “”They let the public down. They didn’t tell the truth in the best way that they should have — to the regulators, to the public — about this serious safety issue that risked life and limb.”