HCA, the nation’s largest hospital company, has agreed in principle with the Justice Department to pay more than $800 million to settle accusations of health care fraud, according to people involved in the case. Under the terms, HCA would pay $630 million in fines and penalties to resolve all outstanding civil litigation with the Justice Department. An additional $250 million would be paid by HCA to the Medicare program to resolve expense claims submitted by the company to the government.

In sum, the company will be paying a total of more than $1.7 billion in civil and criminal penalties. The new settlement addresses charges raised in eight civil lawsuits, that HCA engaged in schemes to defraud the government health care programs of hundreds of millions of dollars. The suits were brought under the federal whistle-blower act.

(via New York Times)