By News Sentinel staff
Thursday, May 3, 2012
KNOXVILLE — A physicians practice group has agreed to pay $4.36 million to resolve allegations it violated federal law while submitting false claims for medical services.
The settlement involves Apex Medical Group, doing business as Nephrology Consultants, and some affiliated dialysis centers in Knoxville area counties.
According to an announcement today from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee, an investigation showed “from at least 2001 through 2006 Apex submitted numerous false and fraudulent claims to government health programs, including Medicare and TennCare, for payment through a pattern of upcoding for various physician services.
“During that same time frame, the six dialysis clinics owned by Extracorporeal Technologies, Inc., and Fort Sanders Kidney Center, Inc., improperly submitted inaccurate claims to these government health programs for a variety of dialysis services.”
The entities violated the federal False Claims Act, the Tennessee Medicaid False Claims Act, and other federal and state laws and regulations, according to federal prosecutors.
Apex will compensate federal and state government health programs for the improper billing practices, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Among those taking part in the investigation were representatives from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General; FBI; area federal prosecutors; the TBI; and the Tennessee Valley Authority Office of Inspector General.
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2012/may/03/physicians-group-to-pay-436-million-in-over/