U.S. ex rel. Fowler v. Evercare Hospice, Inc. – Sept. 2015 (Summary)

FALSE CLAIMS ACT

U.S. ex rel. Fowler v. Evercare Hospice, Inc., Civil Action No. 11-cv-00642-PAB-NYW (D. Colo. Sept. 21, 2015)

In this False Claims Act lawsuit, the court found that the facts supported the government’s case and denied the hospice’s motion to have the case dismissed. The court found that the hospice was submitting false claims to the government for payment for treatment received by patients who did not qualify for hospice care.

The court found that the defendant provided hospice care in this case to patients who should not have been certified by Medicare standards to receive the care.  The court found that the hospice provider pressured and incentivized employees to admit patients into hospice care.  The employees were also paid bonuses for each patient admitted.