An Oklahoma doctor will pay more than a half million dollars to settle allegations that he violated the False Claims Act, even though he did not submit any claims. How is this possible?
According to the Department of Justice, Gordon Laird, D.O. allowed a practice - Prevention Plus - to use his national provider identifier (NPI) to report E/M visits and therapy services he did not provide or supervise, starting in 2011.
Laird severed ties with the practice and deactivated the NPIs associated with it at the end of 2011. However, the U.S. attorney alleged that Laird reactivated the NPI early in 2012, but not to go back to work:
Laird reactivated his NPIs associated with Prevention Plus around March 2012 so Prevention Plus could use them to bill Medicare for services in January and February 2012 that he did not perform or supervise.
Laird will pay $580,000 to settle the allegations.