CHARLESTON, W.Va. — U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin has announced a major settlement in connection with fraud committed against the state’s Medicaid program.
Goodwin said Wednesday Massachusetts-based Calloway Laboratories has agreed to a $4.6 million settlement. Calloway did urine tests for Medicaid but instead of charging the state for that, it added a pathology charge.
The settlement is the largest-ever health care fraud recovery in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in West Virginia.
“Drug treatment programs are a vital component of our ongoing battle against prescription drug abuse,” Goodwin said. “Treating providers rely largely on urine drug testing to determine whether patients are using illegal substances, and if so what substances, and whether patients are properly taking prescription medications as opposed to selling them on the street. The cost for such testing often falls upon federal health care programs like Medicare and Medicaid. The additional expense of unnecessary review, like that routinely performed by Calloway Labs, increases the burden on an already stressed system.”