LEAKED DOCUMENT REVEALS SETTLEMENT BETWEEN SELECT MEDICAL AND DOJ

The Department of Health and Human Services posted and then removed a link to a corporate integrity agreement witht he Pennsylvania post acute provider Select Medical and its hospital suggesting that a settlement has been reached with the U.S. Justice Department. Such documents generally accompany False Claims Act whistleblower settlements with the DOJ. According to the inspector general’s office, the agreement was inadvertently released. The document said that Select will enter into a five year agreement that entails various obligations including a corporate compliance officer and committee, a written code of conduct and annyal training. The agreement relates to issues concerning financial arrangements between physicians and the company but no further details are known yet. However, in an SEC filing for the period of June 30, Select said it had received a subpoenas from the inspector general’s office which sought documents concerning its financial relationship with certain physicians in its long-term care hospitals. It recorded a pre-tax chage of $7.5 million to set a reserve representing the best estimate of probable settlement.