Tareen Dermatology agrees to pay $1.6M over false claims to Medicare
By Adrianne Appel2024-07-01T21:14:00
A Minnesota dermatology practice, its owner, and chief executive agreed to pay $1.6 million to settle allegations, first brought by two whistleblowers, that the company violated the Anti-Kickback Statue by making false claims to Medicare.
Tareen Dermatology (TD), dermatologist and owner Mohiba Tareen, and CEO Basir Tareen, also settled charges of wrongful termination and retaliation against one of the whistleblowers who served as a billing specialist, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and state of Minnesota alleged in a complaint.
The case resolves claims brought under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act by Carrie Cremin, TD’s former director of laser therapy, and Susanne Polzin, its former billing specialist. The pair will receive an undisclosed amount of the settlement total, the DOJ announced in a press release Friday.