Medtronic to pay $23.5M to settle kickback claims

Medical device giant, Medtronic, admits no wrongdoing but has agreed to pay the federal government $23.5 million to settle claims that it paid doctors kickbacks to get them to use its pacemakers and defibrillators.

The U.S. Justice Department accused Medtronic of causing false claims to be submitted to Medicare and Medicaid and of paying doctors participating in some of the company's post-market studies and device registries $1,000 to $2,000 per patient. The studies and registries required a new or previous implant of a Medtronic device in each patient, said the Justice Department in a statement about the settlement.

[See also: Payments to doctors from medical device company questioned.]

"Patients who rely on their healthcare providers to implant vital medical devices expect that those decisions will be made with the patients' best interests in mind," said Tony West, assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's Civil Division, in the statement. "Kickbacks, like those alleged here, distort sound medical judgments with financial incentives paid for by the taxpayers."

In a statement acknowledging the settlement, Medtronic admitted no wrongdoing and said it had created a reserve for the full payment in the fourth quarter of 2011.

The Justice Department noted that the settlement with Medtronic resolves two whistleblower lawsuits. The whistleblowers will receive payments totaling an excess of $3.96 million.

Follow HFN associate editor Stephanie Bouchard on Twitter @SBouchardHFN.