Carlson Therapy Network settles Medicare Qui Tam suit in Connecticut

Carlson Therapy Network, with twenty physical therapy facilities in Connecticut, has reached a substantial settlement with federal prosecutors in a False Claims Act suit arising out of the company’s billing practices.

Medicare and Tricare regulations require physical therapists who provide certain types of services to treat patients one at a time, with one-on-one contact. But according to the former Carlson employee who filed the Qui Tam suit, for three years from 2002 to 2005, the company’s therapists routinely provided treatment to multiple patients at the same time. Carlson then submitted to Medicare bills reflecting that the company’s patients had received individual treatment.

As part of the settlement, Carlson did not admit liability for wrongdoing, and the settlement asserts that the matter was resolved to escape the expense and uncertainty of litigation. Nevertheless, Carlson has consented to an agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that is crafted to ensure the company’s future compliance with Medicare billing requirements.

For the full story, go to the Hartford Courant and the News-Times.