Dialysis provider DaVita agreed to pay $34.5 million to resolve alleged False Claims Act violations.
DaVita allegedly paid a competitor to induce referrals to its pharmacy services provider, DaVita Rx, the Justice Department said in a news release Thursday. In addition, the company allegedly paid kickbacks to physicians to induce patient referrals to its dialysis centers, according to the agency.
Related: FTC investigates dialysis giants over noncompetes: Politico
A DaVita spokesperson said in a statement the company denies any liability and had reached an agreement with the government to close this chapter and move forward.
As outlined in the settlement agreement, a DaVita competitor allegedly sent its patients' prescriptions to DaVita Rx. In exchange, the dialysis company allegedly acquired certain European dialysis clinics from that competitor and allegedly agreed to extend a contract to purchase dialysis products from its subsidiary, the agency said Thursday.
DaVita also allegedly offered management services to vascular access centers owned by physicians in a position to refer patients to DaVita clinics, and then allegedly did not collect management fees from the physician-owners to induce referrals, the agency said. DaVita also allegedly paid a large nephrology practice to induce referrals to DaVita clinics, according to the Justice Department.
The allegations stem from a 2017 whistleblower lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado by Dennis Kogod, former chief operating officer of DaVita. The federal government intervened in May. Kogod is set to receive $6.4 million from the settlement.
The settlement accounts for less than 0.3% of DaVita’s $12.14 billion of 2023 revenue.
In 2017, DaVita agreed to pay $63.7 million to resolve other False Claims Act allegations involving billing Medicare for prescription medications that were allegedly never shipped.
