ETMC and Others Agree to a Multi Million Dollar Settlement

PLANO – Seven ambulance industry defendants have agreed to pay the government over $21 million to settle a false claims act lawsuit. It was alleged that they knowingly submitted claims to the Medicare and Medicaid programs that violated the anti‑kickback statute. Among the defendants in the suit were East Texas Medical Center Regional Healthcare System, East Texas Medical Center Regional Health Services and their affiliated ambulance company, Paramedics Plus. They were said to have offered kickbacks to several municipal entities to secure their lucrative ambulance business. The court action stems from a whistleblower lawsuit that was filed in January of last year. The U.S. Department of Justice later became a party in the suit. The man who filed the whistleblower lawsuit, Dr. Stephen Dean, will receive over $4.9 million as his share of the settlements.