Florida skilled nursing facility pays $17 million to settle fraud charge
Hebrew Homes Health Network allegedly gave doctors kickbacks for the referral of Medicare patients.
Hebrew Homes Health Network allegedly gave doctors kickbacks for the referral of Medicare patients.
Hebrew Homes Health Network has agreed to pay $17 million to resolve allegations that it gave doctors kickbacks for the referral of Medicare patients to its skilled nursing facilities in Florida, the Department of Justice announced this week.
William Zubkoff, former president and executive director of the Florida skilled nursing facility, has agreed to resign.
The settlement resolves allegations made in a lawsuit filed by Stephen Beaujon, former CFO of Hebrew Homes, under the whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act. Beaujon will receive $4.25 million in the settlement, according to the Justice Department.
[Also: Running list of notable 2015 healthcare frauds]
Hebrew Homes provided skilled nursing services at seven rehabilitation and skilled nursing facilities in Miami-Dade County, Florida.
From 2006 through 2013, it allegedly operated a sophisticated kickback scheme in which many physicians were hired as medical directors, but who were actually paid several thousand dollars monthly for patient referrals.
The Department of Justice said the medical director served in “ghost positions” which required them to perform few, if any, contracted job duties. Patient referrals to the Hebrew Homes facilities increased exponentially once the medical directors were put on the payroll, according to the Department of Justice.
[Also: OIG warns physicians of fraud over compensation packages]
Also, as part of the settlement, Hebrew Homes has entered into a five-year corporate integrity agreement with the Department of Human Services-Office of Inspector General and has agreed to change its policies on hiring and maintaining medical directors.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.
The Office of Inspector General recently released a warning over the hiring of medical directors, based on recent settlements with 12 physicians over violations of the anti-kickback statute. The OIG urged physicians who enter into medical directorships to ensure the arrangements reflect fair market value for services.
Twitter: @SusanMorseHFN
