The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania has announced that Eye Consultants of Pennsylvania, PC (ECOP) will pay $790,000 to settle allegations under the False Claims Act. The claims involved submissions to Medicare for Evaluation & Management (E&M) services that allegedly violated Medicare rules.
Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus stated that between September 1, 2018, and April 7, 2025, ECOP submitted claims to Medicare Part B for E&M services on the same date beneficiaries received bilateral eye injections, which was against Medicare regulations.
“The United States Attorney’s Office in the Middle District of Pennsylvania is dedicated to working with its law enforcement partners to zealously investigate allegations of the submission of unsupported claims to federal healthcare programs,” said Acting United States Attorney John C. Gurganus. “Improperly billing federal healthcare programs increases the costs of these taxpayer-funded programs. Settlements like this one are an important part of the fight against fraud, waste and abuse.”
Maureen Dixon, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG), emphasized the importance of compliance with Medicare rules by providers. “Providers who participate in the Medicare program must abide by the program’s rules when submitting claims,” she said. “HHS-OIG is committed to protecting the integrity of the Medicare program and maintaining the trust of the people it serves. We will continue to work with the United States Attorney’s Office and other law enforcement partners to address allegations brought under the False Claims Act.”
The case was managed by HHS-OIG and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tamara Haken from the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Unit at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
