On August 14, 2014,
the Department of Justice issued a press
release stating it recently entered into a settlement agreement with
Cardiovascular Specialists, P.C., d/b/a New York Heart Center of Syracuse, New
York related to alleged Stark
Law violations for over $1.3 million. Specifically, the settlement
resolves allegations that physician compensation may have been determined in a
manner that took into account the volume or value of the physician’s referrals
for nuclear scans and CT scans. According to our research, the practice
currently has ten (10) total physicians.
This is significant because the Stark Law prohibits physician practices from furnishing certain imaging, physical therapy, and other services that are ancillary to the physician’s core practice unless an exception is met. In this settlement, the group offered imaging services in its office locations and allegedly the group’s physicians were being paid based off the volume of the referrals for those imaging services. Such practice is prohibited under the Stark Law because practice groups must meet specific requirements from a compensation perspective to fit within an exception under the Stark Law.
If your physician group is offering durable medical equipment, physical therapy services, imaging services, or other designated health services and your group has questions regarding the Stark Law and appropriate compensation methodologies, please contact Robert A. Wade at (574) 485-2002 or Alex T. Krouse at (574) 485-2003.
This is significant because the Stark Law prohibits physician practices from furnishing certain imaging, physical therapy, and other services that are ancillary to the physician’s core practice unless an exception is met. In this settlement, the group offered imaging services in its office locations and allegedly the group’s physicians were being paid based off the volume of the referrals for those imaging services. Such practice is prohibited under the Stark Law because practice groups must meet specific requirements from a compensation perspective to fit within an exception under the Stark Law.
If your physician group is offering durable medical equipment, physical therapy services, imaging services, or other designated health services and your group has questions regarding the Stark Law and appropriate compensation methodologies, please contact Robert A. Wade at (574) 485-2002 or Alex T. Krouse at (574) 485-2003.