Physical therapy company to pay $4M to resolve false claims

A physical therapy company with operations in Minnesota must pay $4 million after the company submitted false claims for payment for outpatient physical therapy, according to federal authorities.

RehabAuthority, a physical therapy company with Minnesota locations, has agreed to pay the amount to resolve allegations that it submitted false claims for payment for physical therapy services, a violation of the False Claims Act, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Minnesota.

"The resolution centered on allegations that the company billed the government for direct, one-on-one care with physical therapists but did not provide it when it overbooked government beneficiaries for certain outpatient physical therapy services," the news release said.

According to federal prosecutors, RehabAuthority clinics submitted false claims for therapy at clinics in Minnesota, North Dakota, Idaho and Wyoming between Jan. 1, 2014, and Dec. 31, 2018. The clinics sought payment by billing Medicare Part B, Minnesota Medicaid, TRICARE, and the Veterans Health Administration, the news release said.

The alleged therapy included therapeutic exercises, manual therapy, ultrasounds, therapeutic activities and gait training.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for Minnesota, the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Defense Health Agency, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the Minnesota Attorney General's Office and the Minnesota Department of Human Services worked together on the case. There has been no determination of liability in the case.

Erin Adler • 612-673-1781