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MediSys Health Network, Inc., owns and operates Jamaica Hospital Medical Center and Flushing Hospital Medical Center.
By Forum Staff
The owner and operator of two borough hospitals has agreed to pay $4 million to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by engaging in improper financial relationships with referring physicians, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York.
The Department of Justice investigation revealed that MediSys Health Network, Inc., which owns and operates Jamaica Hospital Medical Center and Flushing Hospital Medical Center, submitted false claims to the Medicare Program for services rendered to patients referred by physicians with whom MediSys had improper financial relationships, federal officials noted last Wednesday. The relationships took the form of compensation and office lease arrangements that did not comply with the requirements of the Stark Law, which restricts the financial accords that hospitals may have with doctors who refer patients to them.
The allegations were brought to DOJ’s attention through the filing of a complaint pursuant to the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act. Under the act, private citizens can bring suit on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery, Bridget Rohde, acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District, noted.
“Health care providers who enter into improper financial relations with referring physicians compromise the referral process and encourage over-utilization of services, to the potential detriment of both patients and taxpayers,” Rohde said. “We will hold health care providers accountable for their violations of federal law.”
Scott Lampert, Special Agent-in-Charge, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General, New York Region, added, “When hospital operators provide financial incentives to doctors for patient referrals, individuals rightfully wonder whose best interests are being served. We will continue to investigate such entities that fraudulently bill government health programs.”
Acting Assistant Attorney General Chad Readler, of DOJ’s Civil Division, noted that the $4M penalty “should help to deter other health care providers from entering into improper financial relationships with physicians that can taint the physicians’ medical judgment, to the detriment of patients and taxpayers.”
