(Id. at 555 (citations omitted). (Id. Gonzales et al. Fresenius Medical Care North America, Waltham, MA, USA See all articles by this author. (Attachments: #1 Affidavit Certificate of W. Scott Simmer in Support of Motion for Admission Pro Hac Vice)(Sullivan, Christopher) (Entered: 11/22/2021), (#11) Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor, IV: ELECTRONIC ORDER entered granting #6 Motion for Leave to Appear Pro Hac Vice Added James F. Bennett. 2:22-CV-01807 | 2022-10-21, U.S. District Courts | Personal Injury | Whistleblower Lawsuit Against Fresenius Alleges That is, [f]actual allegations must be enough to raise a right to relief above the speculative level . WebBrigid M. Flanagan, RN, MS, Sean Philpott, PhD, MS, and Martin A. Strosberg, MA, MPH, PhD. 3730(e)(4)(B). 293 (Washington state) (All such claims . 132, 140). (Id. Finally, one place to get all the court documents we need. WebMartin Flanagan is a Director, National of Acute Dialysis Services at Liberty Dialysis based in Anchorage, Alaska. See Wilson, 2011 WL 2462469, at *7. by. To survive a motion to dismiss, a complaint alleging fraud must state with particularity the circumstances constituting fraud. Fed.R.Civ.P. United States ex rel. United States ex rel. See Ge, 737 F.3d at 124 (stating that the court reject[s][the] approach sought by the relator, which was a per se rule that if sufficient allegations of misconduct are made, it necessarily follows that false claims and/or material false information were filed). It then alleges: Similarly, for North Carolina, the complaint provides a table of Medicaid (but not Medicare) revenue for a period of six years at fourteen dialysis centers. But nowhere does the complaint identify a specific physician who made a specific referral as a result of a specific unlawful practice that resulted in a specific false claim. 2016). The SEC filings at issue state that (1) at most of our clinics, a relatively small number of physicians account for the referral of all or a significant portion of the patient base, (Def. First, the complaint alleges in general terms that all claims for reimbursement made to Medicare require the submission of a Form UB-40 (or a substantially similar form) that contains various data, including the patient's identifying information and line items for each claim sought to be reimbursed. (Am. Previously, Martin was a Senior Na tional Account Manager at QuickSTAT. Save US$2.12. Accordingly, even if relator had complied with the pre-suit requirements of the False Claims Act, the public-disclosure bar would preclude the claims concerning joint-venture agreements. FMCNA has moved to dismiss the amended complaint on the grounds that (1) the amended complaint is essentially a new complaint and should therefore have been filed under seal as required by 31 U.S.C. Attorneys admitted Pro Hac Vice must have an individual PACER account, not a shared firm account, to electronically file in the District of Massachusetts. Second, it alleges that FMCNA engaged in improper remuneration relationships with physicians who served as medical directors in its outpatient clinics in five ways: by selecting medical directors based on their expected and historical referrals; by paying them above-market compensation to reward referrals; by making no effort to report or verify their hours; by tracking their referrals to make sure they were not making referrals to competitors; and by requiring them to sign onerous noncompete agreements to lock them into their arrangements with FMCNA. Previously, Martin was a Direct or, Acute Maket Development In 2010, Congress amended the AKS to clarify that any Medicare claim that includes items or services resulting from a violation of [the AKS] constitutes a false or fraudulent claim for the purposes of [the FCA]. 42 U.S.C. (CKD Compl. . Martin Flanagan - Fresenius Jason S. Greis at 312.624.6412 orjgreis@beneschlaw.com. Chief Judge F. Dennis Saylor, IV assigned to case. Compl. FMCNA is America's largest dialysis-services provider. (Id. According to the complaint, FMCNA offered physicians the opportunity to enter into free practice-management agreements, in return for which it obtained the practice's data from the prior three to five years. facetime call on chromebook; See East Bay Mun. FMCNA has moved to dismiss the complaint for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. Martin Flanagan is a Director, National of Acute Dialysis Services at Fresenius Medical Care North America based in Waltham, Massachusetts. Suppose, for example, that in a world free from kickbacks, 25% of the dialysis services business of FMCNA would have been captured by competitors. (Attachments: #1 Docket Sheet from District of Maryland, #2 Docket Entries 1-30, #3 Docket Entries 31-50, #4 Docket Entries 51-56, #5 Docket Entries 58-74) (Jones, Sherry) Modified on 10/7/2021 to correct docket text. Williams v. Renal Care Grp., et al., No. (Id. Under the FCA, a relator must comply with the following requirements: Those notification requirements were enacted to allow the Government an adequate opportunity to fully evaluate the private enforcement suit and determine both if that suit involves matters the Government is already investigating and whether it is in the Government's interest to intervene and take over the civil action. United States ex rel. 28). [23-1305] (JAW) [Entered: 04/05/2023 Flanagan v. Fresenius Medical Care Holdings, Inc. Martin Flanagan and United States of America, FRESENIUS MEDICAL CARE HOLDINGS, INC. doing business as Fresenius Medical Care North America, US District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Fifth, it alleges that FMCNA entered into favorable joint-venture agreements (JVAs) with physician groups to induce them to make referrals. If you do not agree with these terms, then do not use our website and/or services. Est. v. Fresenius Medical Care [$6,000,000.00] - San Diego Sexual Harassment Attorneys, Sexual Harassment Lawyers in San Diego, CA. To do so, the complaint must both allege the existence of a scheme to defraud and identify particularized false claims. (g), I respectfully disagree with that interpretation. Beneschs healthcare+ attorneys have significant experience representing nephrology group practices and dialysis organization in governmental fraud and abuse investigations. 2007) (citing Rogan v. Menino, 175 F.3d 75, 77 (1st Cir. . 3730(b)(2); (2) the claims are barred by the FCA publicdisclosure bar, 31 U.S.C. 332-75). General Description of Medicare and Medicaid Claim Systems. 1320a-7b(b)(2). 111-148, 124 Stat. Res., 162 F.3d 195, 200 (2d Cir. Certainly it would not be irrational to conclude that the presence of kickbacks taints the entire payment process, so that 100% of the claims may be deemed to have been caused by the violation. (Id. President, National Cardiovascular Partners; President, Spectra Laboratories. 15). 01 Oct 2018. (Id. Save US$5.33. UNITED STATES ex rel. Defendant contends that the allegations concerning the compensation of medical directors were publicly disclosed prior to the filing of the complaint. 38). Martin Flanagan and United States of America: Defendant: FRESENIUS MEDICAL CARE HOLDINGS, INC. doing business as Fresenius Medical Care North The complaint alleges that FMCNA engaged in improper remunerative relationships with medical directors in its outpatient clinics to capture their referrals. our revenues would decrease. (Id. Again, however, no case, to the Court's knowledge, has ever established such a procedure. (Am. This docket was last retrieved on April 5, 2023. Our Leadership Team - Fresenius Medical Care Martin Flanagan has been a director and President and Chief Executive Officer of Invesco since 2005. Bonuses and performance evaluations for mid-level managers were tied, in part, to patient growth and the increase in number of treatments at individual clinics. US$14.87 US$16.99. . Furthermore, the defendants in that case were entities that at the time were not affiliated with FMCNA. By contrast, here the statements in defendant's securities filings concerning medical-director agreements do not even convey the possibility that those agreements might violate the law. 3730(e)(4)(A). Private persons, known as relators, can file civil qui tam actions on behalf of the United States against persons or entities who violate the act. Notice of appeal (doc. . The government had an opportunity to intervene if it chose, and elected not to do so. Attorneys admitted Pro Hac Vice must have an individual upgraded PACER account, not a shared firm account, to electronically file in the District of Massachusetts. Relator's allegations here describe the same essential scheme and do not materially add to those allegations. (Id. June 11, 2014). (Id. As to the claims arising from that scheme, the complaint alleges the following: As set forth above, the allegations of the complaint concerning joint-venture agreements, free services to hospitals and patients, and free practice-management services to physicians will be dismissed for failure to comply with the notification and other requirements of the False Claims Act.