The health system had taken aim at the FCA's qui tam provisions, but the case had some hurdles still to overcome.
Intermountain Healthcare has formally asked that the Supreme Court dismiss its pending petition regarding a long-running False Claims Act dispute between the nonprofit health system and a cardiologist.
The concise motion filed Wednesday by Intermountain's legal team doesn't mention a reason for the timing of the dismissal request, but it comes after the Salt Lake City–based system signaled late last month that it expected to settle the dispute out of court rather than wait on the justices to decide whether they would take up the case.
Intermountain had sought to use the case as a vehicle to rein in FCA whistleblower litigation. But observers said the case was a bit of a long shot for procedural and precedential reasons. Even so, the case contains some important lessons for healthcare executives.
"[P]erhaps the best advice for most healthcare providers is to take this as kind of an early warning sign and do everything possible to proactively get ahead of the curve," said Jason P. Mehta, JD, a Bradley partner based in Tampa, Florida, who defends businesses and individuals involved in FCA cases and other matters.
Related: Intermountain to Settle False Claims Dispute Pending Before Supreme Court
Related: Don't Ignore Intermountain's Long-Shot Bid to Deflate the False Claims Act
Steven Porter is an associate content manager and Strategy editor for HealthLeaders, a Simplify Compliance brand.