Health Law Scan

In the Care Alternatives False Claims Act (FCA) appeal, a panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on March 4 reversed the summary judgment granted to hospice provider Care Alternatives at the district court, disagreeing with AseraCare precedent out of the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and holding that clinical disagreement alone may comprise legal falsity and is sufficient to create a triable issue of fact for the jury.

In an action especially significant to hospice providers but also other healthcare providers regarding the determinations of medical necessity for Medicare billing purposes, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and AseraCare have just agreed, following a mediation, to settle for $1 million the long-running False Claims Act qui tam litigation matter in which the United States had previously sought $200 million in liability.

In a recent analysis for Today’s General Counsel, healthcare industry partner Katie McDermott analyzes the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit’s decision in United States v. AseraCare, Inc. and offers key takeaways for False Claims Act (FCA) practitioners from “this reasoned and scholarly opinion.”

The US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit has issued its much awaited decision in United States v. Aseracare, and for those who question how mere differences clinical opinion can ever support punitive False Claims Act (FCA) liability, it is especially informative.