GA hospitals to repay $2.7 million in claims

The St. Joseph's-Candler health system has agreed to repay the state of Georgia more than $2.7 million to settle claims for Medicaid overbilling. The settlement, announced by Attorney General Sam Olens, requires the hospital system to pay a lump sum $2.717 million to the state Department of Community Health to settle claims related to Medicaid overbilling and reimbursements. Officials say the investigation found the hospitals filed claims that did not reflect the full amount of Medicare prior payments, which allowed the providers to receive excessive Medicaid reimbursements. Doreen Chery, corporate compliance office at St. Joseph's-Candler, said the issue involved about 8,000 claims filed between 2006 and 2009.