CVR Management, LLC, a professional services corporation in Greenbelt, Maryland, along with the Center for Vein Restoration, Center for Vascular Medicine (CVM), LLC, and Sanjiv Lakhanpal, MD, FACS, agreed to pay the United States $4 million to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by billing Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE for medically unnecessary vein treatment procedures. According to the United States, CVR, over a six-year period, knowingly submitted claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE for chronic venous insufficiency treatment procedures that were medically unnecessary. Specifically, the government alleges that chronic venous insufficiency can be treated by sclerotherapy, radiofrequency ablation, or endovenous laser ablation. The condition refers to the improper functioning of the vein valves where blood, which normally should move upwards toward the heart, instead pools in the veins such that the walls of the veins weaken and become distended manifesting as varicose veins, cramping, swelling, or skin discoloration on the affected leg and sometimes as ulcers or skin necrosis on the legs.
The United States further alleges that neither Medicare, Medicaid, nor TRICARE cover the treatment of varicose veins for cosmetic reasons alone. Treatment for chronic venous insufficiency must be accompanied by certain other conditions and after the patient undergoes a specified period of alternative treatment options that prove unsuccessful. Between January 1, 2010, and December 31, 2016, CVR knowingly billed Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE for sclerotherapy, radiofrequency ablation, and endovenous laser ablation procedures that were not clinically indicated and were medically unnecessary.
CVR Management, LLC provides health care management services and manages the operations of the Center for Vein Restoration, a multi-state collection of physician-led vein treatment practices and medical centers specializing in diagnosing and treating vein disease, notably chronic venous insufficiency and varicose veins. It operates 16 locations in Maryland. The Center for Vascular Medicine, a related practice group, specializes in the treatment of deep venous and arterial disorders in the legs, feet, and pelvic areas. CVM operates several offices located in Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina. Lakhanpal is the entities’ CEO and president and CVM’s chairman of the board.
Jeffrey Newman, JD, MBA, is a whistleblower lawyer whose firm represents healthcare fraud whistleblowers and whistleblowers reporting violations of export controls, tariff evasion, money laundering, and other WB cases. Mr. Newman and his staff also represent many physician whistleblowers in healthcare fraud cases. Whistleblower laws in the U.S. allow individuals with information about export control violations or tariff fraud to report it under the False Claims Act. The Firm’s website is www.JeffNewmanLaw.com. Attorney Newman can be reached at Jeff@Jeffnewmanlaw.com or at 978-880-4758. For other blogs, see: http://JeffNewmanLaw.com
