In 2023, in Minnesota, there was an $487 million settlement, and accidental death of the involved CEO 1 month later. The case was heard in the Warren E. Burger Federal Building & United States Courthouse in St. Paul. Fesenmaier v. Cameron-Ehlen Group Kip Fesenmaier a former employee of Sightpath Medical filed a suit claiming Sightpath Medical partnered with Precision Lens and its CEO, Paul Ehlen, to bill Medicare for false claims. Sightpath and Precision Lens are headquartered in the same building in Bloomington, Minnesota. The jury found that the kickbacks led to the submission of 64,575 false claims to Medicare between 2006 – 2015. The kickbacks were used to get physicians to use Precision Lens and Sightpath products in various ophthalmology procedures. For example: Physicians were encouraged to convert from interocular lenses (IOLs) that they were currently using in cataract surgery to IOLs made available by Precision Lens and Sightpath in exchange for the kickbacks. The Department of Justice noted the kickbacks took various forms including high-end skiing, fishing, hunting and golfing trips. There were trips paid for doctors to attend the College Football National Championship and the Masters golf tournament. There were dinners at expensive restaurants, wine trips, ski trips, private flights, helicopter rides and tickets to Vikings, Packers and Twins games. May 17, 2023, A U.S. District Judge entered a judgment against Precision Lens and its owner, Paul Ehlen, for more than $487 million to settle allegations that it defrauded Medicare. P40-Warhawk On June 27, 2023, Paul Ehlen died when his twin-engine plane crashed due to a mechanical failure, shortly after take-off from Ravalli County Airport in western Montana. Paul was flying a vintage World War II P-40 Warhawk. The following statements were released regarding Paul Ehlen: “Paul had a passion for restoring and flying vintage military aircraft, and he was killed this morning when the single-engine P-40 he was flying back to Minneapolis suffered a mechanical failure on takeoff. "Paul was an innovative and courageous man, and his entrepreneurial spirit and dedication to helping others will continue." "Above all else, Paul was a family man, and our thoughts and prayers are with his wife and children whom he loved so dearly." Paul Ehlen was worth $10 million. October 12, 2023, the Honorable Judge Wilhelmina M. Wright (of the Minnesota US District Court) said Kathryn Ehlen, Paul’s widow and the estate’s personal representative, failed to show that the FCA claims against her husband were “extinguished” upon his death. It is an interesting ruling, as by statute, only civil actions for damages survive the death of the defendant. The court ruled that the False Claims Act allows for recovery of damages. I wonder if Paul Ehlen knew the debt would remain. It’s important to note that I haven’t seen anything that would suggest Paul’s spouse had any awareness of the fraud. The cost of Medicare fraud is staggering. According to a report from the Centers for Medicare, improper payments made under Medicare programs in 2020 amounted to roughly $31.6 billion. This represents 7.25% of the total Medicare payments made under these programs. And as taxpayers, we foot the bill. Thanks for listening,
Frank
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AuthorFrank F. Weber is a forensic psychologist specializing in homicide and sexual and physical assault cases. He uses his unique understanding of how predator’s think, knowledge of victim trauma, actual court cases, and passion for writing true crime thrillers. His Award Winning books include "Murder Book" (2017) "The I-94 Murders" (2018) "Last Call" (2019) and "Lying Close" (September 2020). Archives
April 2024
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