J&L Medical is a durable medical equipment company. As part of its business, it provides Continuous
Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) and Bilevel Positive Airway Pressure (BiPAP)
devices and accessories to Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries who have been
diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea.
It
is alleged that J&L regularly utilized the services of unlicensed
technicians to provide respiratory therapy services to Medicare and Medicaid
beneficiaries, including setting up CPAP and BiPAP machines, fitting the
patients with the masks used with those machines, and educating the patients
about the use of the machines.
Under
Connecticut law, the practice of respiratory therapy is a licensed
activity. It is alleged that the respiratory therapy services in question
could only be legally performed by licensed respiratory therapists. Unlicensed practice issues are arising more frequently in audits, qui tam cases and criminal prosecutions.
To resolve the allegations under the federal and state False Claims Acts, J&L agreed to pay $600,000, which covers conduct occurring from January 1, 2008 through May 15, 2013. As part of the settlement, J&L also agreed to implement a Compliance Program intended to prevent and/or detect fraud, waste, and abuse in claims submitted by the company to the Connecticut Medicaid program.
To resolve the allegations under the federal and state False Claims Acts, J&L agreed to pay $600,000, which covers conduct occurring from January 1, 2008 through May 15, 2013. As part of the settlement, J&L also agreed to implement a Compliance Program intended to prevent and/or detect fraud, waste, and abuse in claims submitted by the company to the Connecticut Medicaid program.
A
complaint against J&L was filed in the U.S. District Court in
Connecticut under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the both the
federal and state False Claims Acts. The relator (whistleblower) was a former employee of J&L and a licensed respiratory
therapist, will receive a share of the proceeds of the settlement in the amount
of $102,000.
The
whistleblower provisions of both the federal and state False Claims Acts
provide that the whistleblower is entitled to receive a percentage of the
proceeds of any judgment or settlement recovered by the government.
Posted by Tracy Green, Esq.
Work: 213-233-2260
Posted by Tracy Green, Esq.
Work: 213-233-2260
