A settlement has been reached to resolve False Claims Act allegations against 21st Century Oncology.
The whistleblowers' share of the settlement will be $7 million.
The allegations arose from a lawsuit, claiming that 21st Century Oncology performed and billed for procedures that were not medically necessary.
On March 8, 2016, the Department of Justice announced, that the defendants intentionally and improperly billed for this procedure under circumstances where the procedure served no medically appropriate purpose. The government alleged that the procedure was performed by physicians and physicists at 21st Century Oncology locations who were not properly trained to interpret and utilize the Gamma function results. The government also alleged that the defendants billed for this procedure when no physician reviewed the Gamma function results until seven or more days after the last day patients received radiation treatment therapy. Finally, the government alleged that the defendants billed for the procedure when no Gamma result was available due to technical failures in the imaging equipment.
In December 2015, 21st Century Oncology LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of 21st Century Oncology Inc, paid $19.75 million to settle allegations that 21st Century Oncology LLC billed federal healthcare programs for laboratory tests that were not medically necessary. The company also allegedly offered bonuses to physicians who ordered unnecessary test.
