Liberty Insurance Corp., along with affiliated entities, accused an array of clinics and other healthcare-adjacent businesses of operating a referral scheme to direct insureds of Liberty to a certain set of medical professionals. Liberty alleged that this was conducted through the submission of fraudulent bills, invoices, and correspondence.
The named defendants in the Eastern District of Michigan case include pain management clinics, physical therapy clinics, a chiropractor, a medical transport company, a medical imaging clinic, and an occupational therapy clinic, as well as the doctors and specialists to whom patients were purportedly referred. The complaint said that the defendants submitted “exorbinant” charges to Liberty for medical services that were either unnecessary or never actually carried out.
The plaintiff said the defendants sought out people who had been involved in automobile accidents and convinced them to seek medical treatment with the defendants, even if they did not need such care. Liberty said that the defendants would go as far as purchasing “unlawfully requested police reports” to track down potential referrals.
Specific counts brought by Liberty include Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act violations, common law fraud, civil conspiracy, payment under mistake of fact, and unjust enrichment. The plaintiffs also seek a declaratory judgment that the claims are not compensable under Michigan law.
The plaintiffs are represented by the Law Offices of Grieg, Kennedy, Seifert and Fitzgibbons.
