Acadia Healthcare, one of the country’s largest for-profit chains of psychiatric hospitals, has agreed to pay nearly $20 million to settle a federal investigation accusing the company of defrauding taxpayer-funded health insurance programs like Medicare and Medicaid, the Justice Department said on Thursday.

Prosecutors said that Acadia had held patients for longer than necessary and admitted people who didn’t need to be there. Once patients entered its facilities, the government said, Acadia failed to provide therapy and kept staffing dangerously low, leading to assaults and suicides.

[…]

Another whistle-blower, Brian Snyder, who was an executive at Park Royal, said in an interview that the hospital systematically worked to hold patients with insurance as long as possible.

Mr. Snyder said the problems were widespread at Acadia. “It’s not by accident or a few bad apples,” he said, “it’s by design.”

>> View full story on The New York Times

 

[OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT]

Acadia Healthcare Company Inc. to Pay $19.85M to Settle Allegations Relating to Medically Unnecessary Inpatient Behavioral Health Services

From the U.S. Department of Justice (September 26, 2024)

Acadia Healthcare Company Inc., a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in Franklin, Tennessee, has agreed to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act and related state statutes by knowingly billing for medically unnecessary inpatient behavioral health services or for services that did not meet federal and state regulations. Acadia Healthcare Company owns and operates inpatient behavioral health facilities throughout the United States, including The Pavilion at HealthPark LLC, doing business as Park Royal Hospital in Ft. Myers, Florida; Riverwoods Behavioral Health LLC, doing business as Lakeview Behavioral Health in Norcross, Georgia, and as Riverwoods Behavioral Health System in Riverdale, Georgia; Ten Broeck Tampa LLC, doing business as North Tampa Behavioral Health in Wesley Chapel, Florida; PHC of Michigan LLC, doing business as Harbor Oaks Hospital in New Baltimore, Michigan; and Seven Hills Hospital LLC, doing business as Seven Hills Hospital in Henderson, Nevada (collectively, Acadia).

» View press release on Justice.gov

 

[ADDITIONAL COVERAGE]

Acadia Healthcare Company pays settlement after whistleblower investigation

From KTNV Las Vegas (October 9, 2024)

HENDERSON (KTNV) — Acadia Healthcare Company Inc., which owns and operates Seven Hills Hospital in Henderson, has agreed to pay a settlement.

[…]

“My only hope is that this investigation and settlement will stop any future harms,” said Janel Quinn, a principal of The Employment Law Group, who represents two of the whistleblowers. “Psychiatric patients arrive in a fragile and deeply vulnerable state, and they deserve compassionate care — not to be detained for maximum dollars.”

Under the settlement agreement, Acadia will pay $16,663,918 to the U.S. to resolve its liability under the False Claims Act for false billings.

The company will also pay an additional $3,186,082 to Florida, Georgia, Michigan, and Nevada to resolve their state law claims against Acadia.

» View full story on KTNV

 

Acadia shares plummet on news of DOJ fine

From Nashville Post (September 27, 2024)

Acadia Healthcare has agreed to pay approximately $19.85 million to settle allegations that it violated the federal False Claims Act and related state statutes — with the stock of the Franklin-based company losing roughly 27 percent of value on the heels of the news.

In early morning trading, Acadia shares (ticker: ACHC) were priced at $55.66, down $20 per share.

According to a release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Acadia — which provides mental health treatment services — was charged with knowingly having billed either for medically unnecessary inpatient behavioral health services or for services that did not meet federal and state regulations.

» View full story on Nashville Post

 

Pasco, Lee hospitals named in $20M federal settlement

From the Business Observer (September 26, 2024)

Acadia Healthcare, a Tennessee medical group with behavioral hospitals in Fort Myers and Wesley Chapel, has agreed to pay $19.85 million to settle allegations that it “knowingly” billed for unnecessary medical services and services not meeting federal and state regulations at hospitals nationwide.

The settlement with the medical organization was announced Thursday by the United States Department of Justice. DOJ says Acadia will pay $16.6 million of the fine to the federal government and $3.18 million to Florida, Georgia, Michigan and Nevada to resolve state claims.

Among the allegations are that Acadia admitted people not eligible for inpatient treatment, failed to release people no longer in need of care and did not provide adequate supervision leading to violence and suicide.

» View full story on the Business Observer

 

Acadia Healthcare $19.85M Unnecessary Inpatient Settlement

From Lawyer Monthly (September 27, 2024)

Acadia Healthcare Company Inc., a corporation established in Delaware and headquartered in Franklin, Tennessee, has consented to settle claims asserting that it breached the False Claims Act and associated state laws by willfully submitting bills for inpatient behavioral health services that were not medically necessary or for services that failed to comply with federal and state regulations.

The United States asserted that from 2014 to 2017, Acadia intentionally submitted fraudulent claims for reimbursement to Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE for inpatient behavioral health services that were neither reasonable nor medically necessary.

» View full story on Lawyer Monthly

 

Former Acadia Employees Received Reward for Blowing the Whistle on Healthcare Fraud

From The National Law Review (September 26, 2024)

The United States Department of Justice settled a False Claims Act qui tam whistleblower lawsuit against inpatient behavioral health facilities operator Acadia Healthcare Company, Inc. Under the terms of the settlement, the operator paid almost $20 million to the United States and the States of Florida, Georgia, Michigan, and Nevada. The relators, or whistleblowers, who filed suit in 2017, received a reward of 19% of the government’s recovery of misspent Medicare, TRICARE, and Medicaid funds.

» View full story on The National Law Review

They say patience is a virtue. Does that mean the interactive process on an employee’s reasonable accommodation can go at a snail’s pace?

Not according to the court in Pelton v. DeJoy, No. 19-1766 (D.D.C. May 3, 2024), which indicated a four-year timeline between request and accommodation would be a delay too long to withstand a failure-to-accommodate challenge under the Rehabilitation Act.

The case involved an attorney hired by the U.S. Postal Service in 2013. Her disabilities included a spinal cord injury, cervical fusions, bilateral thoracic outlet syndrome, nerve damage, depression, and a genetic clotting disorder. During her time with the USPS, the attorney was diagnosed with or treated for peripheral nerve entrapment, carpal tunnel syndrome, tendon and ligament tears, tremors, anxiety, depression, chronic insomnia, and weight gain.

The attorney said she requested an ergonomic chair, desk, keyboard, and mouse during her first week on the job. She presented these requests to the employee who conducted her orientation, however, was told that there was no room in the budget. Instead, she was shown “a room full of broken office equipment” from which she was expected to select something that would work for her.

In response to concerns raised by 22 former AIA presidents in a letter dated April 4, and another letter sent by this year’s FAIA selection committee dated April 2, AIA has engaged Miller & Chevalier, a Washington, D.C.–based law firm, for an independent investigation into the claims.

[…]

Former AIA general counsel Terrence Ona was terminated on April 24 after he was put on administrative leave for allegedly engaging in “potential misconduct” against Woods. (Ona was the person who reported [AIA CEO Lakisha Wood]’s financial activity to the AIA’s treasurer Heather Philip-O’Neal.) AIA’s head of human resources, Kiersten Thornton, told Ona he was being investigated for discrimination, and that he “targeted African-American/[B]lack women in his review.”

In turn, Ona filed a lawsuit against AIA in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia on June 6. Ona alleges that he’s been unlawfully discriminated against, unlawfully retaliated against, wrongfully terminated, and defamed by his former employer. He is suing for $2 million.

According to the lawsuit, Ona had been with the AIA since 2007 and possessed “a record of excellent performance and exceeded or met expectations at all relevant times prior to [AIA’s] discrimination.” The lawsuit claims that Ona was fired because of an inquiry he made into the actions of Woods and CSO Vicky Schneider.

Ona is bringing six charges against AIA. Court materials claim that AIA’s “illegal actions against Ona have damaged Ona’s reputation and have caused him to sustain economic damages and mental anguish.”

>> View full story on The Architect’s Newspaper

 

[ADDITIONAL COVERAGE]

 

American Institute of Architects CEO Accused of Misconduct

From Bloomberg (June 7, 2024)

Twenty-two past presidents of the American Institute of Architects signed a letter raising claims of misconduct against the organization’s current leadership, including concerns about misspending, nepotism and retaliation in the workplace.

The letter is one of a series of communications from professional architect groups, including state and local AIA chapters, charging that the national organization’s executive vice president and chief executive officer, Lakisha Ann Woods, has used the office to reward herself and allies. The CEO said in an interview there was no misconduct.

The AIA is also facing a lawsuit from the former chief counsel for the AIA, Terrence “Terry” Ona, for discrimination, wrongful termination and defamation.

>> View full story on Bloomberg

 

AIA members decry nepotism and other misconduct claims

From Archinect News (June 10, 2024)

Allegations of executive misconduct on the part of American Institute of Architects (AIA) CEO Lakisha Ann Woods and senior staffers who allegedly engaged in nepotism and other forms of unethical behavior have surfaced amidst the annual AIA24 conference that was held last week in Washington, D.C.

The list of accusations stemming from an April 4th letter signed by more than twenty past AIA presidents calls into question the organization’s leadership at a critical time. In an article published by Bloomberg late Friday, Woods and others were maligned for a series of missteps that includes a $152,000 staff retreat to the Dominican Republic in early March, unlawful firings and other retaliation, changes to the College of Fellows nominations process, and an increasingly toxic work culture within the AIA National ranks.

Additionally, as Bloomberg reported, former Chief Council Terrance Ona has recently entered an employment discrimination suit against the AIA, claiming he was unlawfully terminated in response to his March 25th internal complaint detailing Woods’ personal misuse of office privileges.

>> View full story on Archinect News