Amedisys finalizes $150 million payment to settle Medicare fraud case

Baton Rouge-based Amedisys has finalized an agreement to pay $150 million to the federal government to settle allegations that the company submitted false home health care billings to the Medicare program between 2008 and 2010, the Department of Justice announced today via a press release. Amedisys, which provides home health services in 37 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, is not admitting to any wrongdoing under terms of the settlement. Amedisys first announced the tentative settlement amount in a regulatory filing in November, saying it had begun setting aside funds to make the payment. The company also will enter into a corporate integrity agreement with the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services as part of the settlement, DOJ says. The settlement also resolves “certain allegations that Amedisys maintained improper financial relationships with referring physicians,” DOJ says. In total, seven whistleblower lawsuits pending against Amedisys in federal court—six in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and one in the Northern District of Georgia—are resolved under the settlement. “As part of today’s settlement, the whistleblowers—primarily former Amedisys employees—will collectively split over $26 million,” DOJ says. “This settlement demonstrates the department’s commitment to ensuring that home health providers, like other providers, comply with the rules and don’t misuse taxpayer dollars,” says DOJ Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division Stuart Delery in a prepared statement. —Staff report