Pre-pandemic Misconduct Allows DOJ to Claw Back Paycheck Protection Program Funds
On April 12, 2022, Physician Partners of America agreed to pay $24.5 million to settle False Claims Act allegations that it billed federal health care programs for unnecessary medical testing and that it violated the Physician Self-Referral Law, known as the Stark Law.
In an interesting development in COVID-19 funding enforcement under the FCA, the Department of Justice also alleged that PPOA falsely represented to the Small Business Administration that it was not engaged in unlawful activity when it applied for a Paycheck Protection Program loan, citing, in part, PPOA’s violations of the Stark Law and other health care regulations as evidence of PPOA’s false certification.
The settlement marks the first documented instance the DOJ has utilized violations of health care laws as the basis to claw back PPP funds.
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