Baptist Health System has agreed to pay $1.5 million in a settlement for allegations involving discounts offered to some Medicare beneficiaries. Prosecutors claimed that from Jan. 1, 2016, to Aug. 15, 2022, Baptist Health subsidiaries offered discounts of up to 50% or more on patient cost-sharing obligations for specific categories of Medicare beneficiaries. These actions were deemed to violate the False Claims Act, according to prosecutors.
The health system, headquartered in Jacksonville, directed its subsidiaries to provide discounts to patients in order to encourage them to purchase services reimbursed by federal health care programs or to refer others to those services. However, the Justice Department commended Baptist Health for cooperating with the investigation and implementing corrective actions such as discontinuing the discount policy, conducting an internal compliance review, and providing detailed disclosure statements to assist in the investigation.
Despite attempts to reach out for comment, Baptist Health officials could not be reached on Monday. The settlement does not constitute an admission of liability on the part of the hospital system, as stated in the news release.
