Lynch Settles False Medicare Claims For $3M; Whistleblower to Get $5.5K

Posted: 12/09/2013  browse the blog archive
Lynch Settles False Medicare Claims For $3M; Whistleblower to Get $5.5K

Lynch Ambulance has agreed to pay more than $3 million to settle a lawsuit, under the False Claims Act, alleging it received overpayments from the Medicare program and other federal health care programs for transporting patients who were not eligible for ambulance transports, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced last month.

Allegedly, Lynch Ambulance knowingly billed Medicare and other federal healthcare programs for transporting patients who were not “bed-confined” or whose transports otherwise were not medically necessary. The federal health care programs that paid claims for medically unnecessary transports were Medicare, TRICARE, and the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program.

 Lynch Ambulance has also entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services.

The lawsuit was originally filed by Jamie Weatherly and Dawn Lucero, two former Lynch Ambulance employees, under the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act.  The False Claims Act allows private parties with knowledge of fraud against the government to sue on behalf of the government and share in the recovery. Weatherly’s and Lucero’s share of the settlement has not yet been determined.

The Chanler Group, in association with the Hirst Law Group, represents whistleblowers who take action under the False Claims Act to report fraud committed against the federal and state governments.  We have years of experience representing whistleblower clients who uncover fraud of every kind perpetrated against our government including, health care fraud, contract fraud, and tax fraud.  Read more about our expertise in False Claims Act cases and how you can take action.