People wait in line to enter CityMD, a medical clinic offering coronavirus disease (Covid-19) testing, on the Upper West Side as the Omicron coronavirus variant continues to spread in Manhattan, New York City, United States, December 19, 2021 .
Andrew Kelly | Reuters
Walgreens-Supported cityMD will pay $12.04 million to settle Covid scam The allegations were made by Department of JusticeThe ministry announced on Friday.
From February 2020 to April 2022, CityMD, which operates more than 100 walk-in urgent care facilities in New York and New Jersey, allegedly received fraudulent government reimbursements for Covid tests by submitting false claims to a Covid program designated specifically for uninsured patients, even if their patients had health insurance.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey brought the following charges False Claims Acta law that encourages whistleblowers to file lawsuits related to potential fraud by offering them a portion of the government’s winnings in successful lawsuits.
“Uninsured Americans at risk from COVID-19 were covered by emergency funding programs intended to provide them the tests, vaccines and treatments they need.” “The alleged misuse of these funds is something we cannot and will not tolerate.”
Stephen Kitzinger, a CityMD patient, initially alleged fraud 2020. As a reward for bringing the case to the government’s attention, Kitzinger will receive more than $2 million in settlement money.
Kitzinger’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent outside of regular business hours.
CityMD cooperated with the government’s investigation and hired a third-party firm to help the government determine the amount of money lost in connection with the alleged fraud, according to the DOJ.
CityMD said it denied the allegations but decided to settle to avoid the cost of lengthy litigation.
“The recent settlement is not a finding of liability or admission of wrongdoing, and CityMD denies the allegations,” a CityMD spokesperson said in a statement to CNBC on Saturday. However, we have resolved this matter to avoid the cost and burden of lengthy litigation.” . “CityMD is proud of the healthcare services we have provided to patients throughout the pandemic.”
