Health Care

Private Health Care Provider Settles Over Massive Fraud Scheme

David Stern | September 15, 2011, 4:00PM

Maxim Healthcare Services agreed to a wide-ranging Deferred Prosecution Agreement (DPA) with federal and state authorities on charges that the company participated in a conspiracy to commit health care fraud, the Department of Justice announced this week. The criminal complaint against Maxim details how the company allegedly defrauded Medicaid and Veterans Affairs programs through false billings from 2003 to 2009.

As a private health care service provider, Maxim primarily provides home health care services and medical staffing to hospitals and assisted living facilities. As part of the DPA, Maxim signed a Statement of Facts agreeing with the allegations made in the complaint - the text of which suggests the extent of the company's fraud may have affected the quality of care it provided.

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Topics: Department of Justice, Fraud, Health Care, Medicaid, Veterans Affairs

Florida

Judge Blocks Florida Law That Restricts Doctors From Asking Patients About Guns

David Taintor | September 15, 2011, 6:10AM

A federal judge on Wednesday blocked a Florida law that restricts doctors -- namely pediatricians -- from asking their patients about guns.

"At issue in this litigation is a law directed at maintaining patients' privacy rights regarding firearm ownership within the context of the doctor-patient relationship," the ruling reads. "In effect, however, the law curtails practitioners' ability to inquire about whether patients own firearms and burdens their ability to deliver a firearm safety message to patients, under certain circumstances."

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Topics: Florida, Gun Control, Gun Rights, Guns, Health Care