PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Federal officials say Rhode Island Hospital has agreed to pay $5.3 million to settle claims that doctors billed Medicare and Medicaid for medically unnecessary overnight hospital stays.
The agreement announced Monday says the hospital must pay $2.6 million to reimburse Medicare and Medicaid and another $2.7 million in damages to the government.
Investigators found from Jan. 1, 2004 to Dec. 31, 2009 doctors ordered overnight stays for approximately 260 patients who underwent stereotactic radiosurgery. The procedure, also known as gamma-knife radiosurgery, is a type of therapy used to treat tumors and brain abnormalities.
Officials say claims for the overnight stays falsely stated they were medically necessary.
The hospital says it's not admitting wrongdoing. It says for more than 10 years Medicaid and private insurers authorized gamma knife as an inpatient procedure.
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