ChristianaCare Health System will pay $47.1 million to settle allegations that the nonprofit health system offered kickbacks to physicians in exchange for referrals.
The settlement stems from a whistleblower lawsuit filed in 2017 by the former chief compliance officer of Wilmington, Delaware-based ChristianaCare. The health system allegedly violated anti-kickback statutes and the physician self-referral law known as the Stark Law by allegedly providing free services to private practice physicians and inducing them to refer patients to ChristianaCare, according to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware.
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A ChristianaCare spokesperson said that the health system is pleased to settle the lawsuit, adding that U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware Judge Richard Andrews dismissed some of the claims and the settlement does not include admission of liability.
“Our number-one priority is to provide the best possible care to every patient we serve. The use of advanced-practice clinicians to coordinate and provide continuity of care throughout our service lines is essential to enabling the level of high-quality, safe care that we provide,” the spokesperson said.
The federal government, state of Delaware and whistleblower Ronald Sherman will receive $42.5 million of the settlement, while the law firm Walden Macht & Haran, which represented Sherman, will receive $4.6 million. Sherman’s share is $12.1 million.
The $47.1 million settlement equates to 1.8% of ChristianaCare’s most recently reported annual revenue of $2.63 billion in 2022.
