Oklahoma Heart Hospital settles whistleblower lawsuit

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) – An Oklahoma hospital has agreed to a $2.8 million settlement in a whistleblower lawsuit in which a former nurse alleged that the hospital made false Medicaid claims.
Oklahoma Heart Hospital admitted no wrongdoing in paying out the settlement to Jennifferr Baird, the state of Oklahoma, and the federal government.
Baird filed a lawsuit in federal court in 2015 alleging that the hospital fraudulently billed outpatient stent procedures as more expensive inpatient services to the state’s Medicaid insurance program.
State and federal prosecutors eventually stepped into the whistleblower case, alleging that the hospital submitted fraudulent claims between 2010 and 2016.
Oklahoma Heart Hospital says that they cooperated with the Justice Department’s investigation and they are continuing to update their billing procedures to comply with government regulations.