New Era Rehabilitation Center, a substance abuse treatment organization with locations in Bridgeport and New Haven, will pay $1.37 million to settle charges that it violated the False Claims Act in defrauding the Medicaid program. The agreement was reached with the Connecticut Attorney General”™s Office and the U.S. Attorney”™s Office of the District of Connecticut.
New Era was accused of double billing Medicaid for services to patients seeking to overcome methadone addiction, with counseling services billed separately and as part of a weekly bundled rate that included other services including intake evaluations, on-site drug abuse testing and monitoring and initial physical examinations. New Era was also accused of failing to provide psychotherapy services, submitting false billing claims and only providing the counseling sessions covered by the weekly bundled rate.
Ebenezer Kolade, New Era”™s president and CEO, issued a statement through his attorneys that emphasized his organization agreed to settle the charges “without admitting any wrongdoing,” adding that the settlement was agreed upon “to avoid the disruption of litigation, and focus on addressing the state”™s devastating opioid crisis and helping patients recover.”
