Some clinical laboratories are engaging in conduct reminiscent of multiple False Claims Act cases against pharmaceutical companies.  Payments to physicians that are for entirely bogus reasons, or legitimate but for greater than fair market value, are being offered by some clinical laboratories to physicians.  For instance, payments made for time spent on collecting, processing and packaging specimens, or for providing information about patients for purported scientific registries, may violate the Anti-Kickback Statute. If the payments are made or received in exchange for referrals of laboratory tests, then the Anti-Kickback Statute as well as the False Claims Act has been violated, and Laboratory Fraud has occurred. This scenario is comprehensively described in a Special Fraud Alert released today by the Office of Inspector General, “Laboratory Payments to Referring Physicians.”

More information for whistleblowers is located at the Nolan Auerbach & White website.