Health care cases remain busy this week. The Justice Department on April 26 announced that it is joining whistleblowers in pursuing three qui tam lawsuits against HealthEssentials Solutions Inc. (HES) that allege false claims were submitted to Medicare.
The cases involve allegations of upcoding — improperly using a diagnosis code that is not supported by the medical record, for the purpose of obtaining greater reimbursement–and billing for medically unnecessary services.
The three cases were filed separately in the U.S. District Court in Louisville, Ky., by former employees of HES.