Davenport Surgeon Pays $2.23m in Healthcare Fraud Claims Case

Tampa, FL — United States Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez announces that Dr. Irfan Siddiqui and his vascular surgery practice, Heart and Vascular Institute of Florida (HAVI), have agreed to pay the United States $2,230,000 to resolve allegations that, from January 2, 2011, to June 30, 2018, Dr. Siddiqui and HAVI violated the False Claims Act by submitting false claims to federal health programs for reimbursement of vein ablation procedures.

The settlement resolves allegations that Dr. Siddiqui and HAVI submitted claims to Medicare and TRICARE for vein ablation services that contained false diagnoses and symptoms. Dr. Siddiqui and HAVI also up-coded evaluation and management service claims to levels of service that were not supported by patients’ medical records, and submitted claims for vein ablation procedures that were medically unnecessary or performed by unqualified personnel, or both.

The settlement arises from a lawsuit filed by one of Dr. Siddiqui’s patients, Ms. Lois Hawks, under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act. Under the settlement, Ms. Hawks will receive $446,000 as a statutory relator’s share in the recovery.