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A call requesting comment was not returned. Officials from Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital said in a statement that the hospital is focused on providing the best possible care for children: “We are still in litigation related to this matter and limited in our ability to provide further statements.”Īlso named in the whistleblower complaint is Community Health Centers of Pinellas, which operates at 13 clinics around the county and is now named Evara Health. Petersburg adheres to strict internal compliance and ethics standards and oversight which would prevent this kind of unfortunate event.” “Under Orlando Health’s leadership, Bayfront Health St. Petersburg was purchased by Orlando Health in 2020. Officials from Community Health Systems, a Fortune 500 company in Tennessee that owned Bayfront when the donations were made, did not respond to a call or emails seeking comment Thursday.īayfront Health St. The other local hospitals named in the whistleblower complaint are Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital and Bayfront Health St. Putzulu said the publicly-funded agency will not comment on litigation involving another entity. Juvenile Welfare Board spokesperson April Putzulu said the donations predate the tenure of CEO Beth Houghton, who was hired in 2019. The juvenile welfare board’s share of donations involving all the hospitals named in the complaint was $3.7 million over four years. The Juvenile Welfare Board agreed to accept the “impermissible” donations and, in return, was allowed to keep 10 percent of the funds.īetween 20, the scheme resulted in $52 million in additional Medicaid payments, the complaint states. Attorney Roger Handberg of the Middle District of Florida.Ī complaint filed in federal court on behalf of the whistleblower states that other Pinellas hospitals and a clinic also used donations and reimbursements to boost their Medicaid payments over a 4-year period starting in 2012. “We will use all available civil remedies to recover the ill-gotten gains obtained by those who defraud it and other government health care programs,” said a statement from U.S. The settlement agreement also requires Ba圜are to pay $25,000 to the whistleblower for expenses and legal costs. The Justice Department said it received information about the donations from a former hospital reimbursement manager in Florida who, under the terms of the whistleblower provisions of federal law, will receive $5 million from the settlement. Ba圜are remains committed to the highest integrity practices, and we look forward to continuing to serve all patients and our communities’ health needs.” At all times, Ba圜are fully cooperated with the government with respect to this matter. “Ba圜are has admitted no wrongdoing and expressly denies the allegations against it, but we have settled to avoid the delay, uncertainty, and expense of litigation. In a statement to the Tampa Bay Times, the company described the settlement as a “disagreement with the government over a complex regulatory question.” Petersburg, Mease Countryside Hospital in Safety Harbor, Mease Dunedin Hospital and Morton Plant Hospital in Clearwater.īa圜are, which is headquartered in Clearwater, runs 15 hospitals in the Tampa Bay region. “Our office is committed to protecting the integrity of the Medicaid Program, and we will use all available civil remedies to recover the ill-gotten gains obtained by those who defraud it and other government health care programs.”įederal officials said the four Ba圜are hospitals involved are all in Pinellas County: St. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.

“When health care providers participate in fraud schemes to boost federal payments, they do so at the expense of federal health care programs,” said a statement from Special Agent in Charge Omar Pérez Aybar of the U.S. It is jointly funded by the federal government and the states.

Medicaid covers medical costs for some low-income households and individuals with disabilities. The federal complaint does not say who arranged, directed or approved the scheme.