DavIta HealthCare Partners is paying $389 million to resolve civil and criminal anti-kickback investigations and will end joint ventures with kidney doctors involving 28 Dialysis clinics.
Providing kidney dialysis treatments is a significant profit maker for the healthcare industry. Patients can go wherever they wish to receive the treatment. But most go to clinics where their own doctors oversee the process. For this reason, clinic owners seek to partner with doctors.
A federal anti-kickback law makes it illegal for money to change hands in exchange for steering patients to medical facilities.
DaVita operates in 44 states, has 53,000 employees and pulled in more than $12 billion in revenue last year. This is up from operating in 42 states with 32,500 employees and $5.7 billion in revenue in 2008. DaVita has been opening about 75 new clinics each year across the country.
Jeffrey Newman represents whistleblowers
