SC Urgent-Care Chains Settle Allegations They Defrauded 3 Health Insurance Programs for $22.5M
The South Carolina-based urgent-care chain Doctors Care and its management company have agreed to pay $22.5 million to settle allegations they defrauded three government health insurance programs.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office announced the charges against Doctors Care, a quick clinic company headquartered in Columbia with 50 locations throughout the state, and its management company, UCI Medical Affiliates of South Carolina, on April 8.
Following a whistleblower complaint, government investigators found the two companies were submitting falsified claims to Medicare, Medicaid, and Tricare, which is the military’s health insurance program, between 2013 and 2018.
The government-run insurers require providers that submit payment claims to have certain credentials. But Doctors Care and UCI allegedly sent in claims for urgent care visits that weren’t conducted by credentialed providers, instead substituting the name of other providers with the proper credentials.
