A settlement has been reached in a whistleblower class action lawsuit brought against Medtronic Inc who is accused of causing certain physicians to submit false claims to federal health care programs for a medical procedure known as “SubQ stimulation”.
According to the settlement, the whistleblower will receive $602,000.
The whistleblower filed this action in 2009 and alleged that from 2007 through 2011, Medtronic knowingly caused dozens of physicians located throughout more than 20 states to submit claims to Medicare and TRICARE for investigational medical procedures known as SubQ stimulation that were not reimbursable. In these procedures, Medtronic’s spinal cord stimulation devices were placed just beneath the skin near an area of pain, most often in the lower back, where the devices could provide electrical impulses to create a “tingling” sensation intended to alleviate chronic pain. The government alleged that even though the safety and efficacy of SubQ stimulation had not been established as required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the company promoted this procedure by, among other strategies, arranging to have physician-customers attend Medtronic-sponsored “on-site training programs” regarding the use of Medtronic spinal cord stimulation devices for SubQ stimulation.
