Halifax Health settles last part of whistle-blower lawsuit for $5.5M

Putting an end to a five-year whistle-blower lawsuit, Halifax Health Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Monday to settle the second part of its case for $5.5 million. The U.S. Department of Justice filed the notice of settlement Tuesday, which officially closes one of nation's the largest fraud cases of its kind, attorneys for the whistle blower said. The suit, originally filed in 2009 by whistle-blower Elin Baklid-Kunz, who still works for the 678-bed Daytona Beach hospital, alleged that the medical center had over-billed Medicare, paid illegal kickbacks to certain doctors and hospitalized patients who didn't need to be admitted.