Florida joins multi-million-dollar Medicaid fraud settlement against lab

FLORIDA — Attorney General Ashley Moody’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) has secured over $700,000 in a multistate action against a toxicology laboratory for submitting false claims to federal healthcare programs.

The case involves Precision Toxicology, LLC, doing business as Precision Diagnostics, Inc., which allegedly engaged in improper practices related to urine drug testing.

The allegations assert that Precision knowingly submitted false claims for tests that were not medically necessary or tainted by kickbacks. The company’s actions reportedly violated federal healthcare program requirements by submitting blanket orders for urine drug testing without any individualized determination of medical necessity.

Additionally, Precision is said to have offered physicians free point-of-care urine drug testing cups in exchange for test referrals, violating federal Anti-Kickback laws.

“Our Medicaid Fraud Control Unit secured more than $700,000 in a multistate action against a toxicology laboratory that submitted false claims to federal healthcare programs for drug tests that were not necessary or tainted by kickbacks,” said Ms Moody.

“We will continue fighting against those that seek to take advantage of taxpayer-funded programs.”

The multistate investigation was led by the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units (NAMFCU) in cooperation with the Department of Justice and U.S. Attorneys’ Offices in Colorado, Connecticut, and Maryland.

According to Ms Moody, Precision Toxicology will pay millions of dollars, plus interest, to the United States, Florida, and other states involved in the case to resolve the allegations, which were outlined in three lawsuits brought by whistleblowers under the False Claims Act.

The lawsuits allege Precision’s practices violated federal healthcare laws, resulting in unnecessary billing to Medicaid programs across multiple states.