Mubashar Choudry, MD, and three medical practices with which he is associated, Washington Cardiovascular Institute, Advanced Vascular Resources, and Washington Vascular Institute, have agreed to pay the United States $750,000 to resolve False Claims Act allegations that they knowingly billed Medicare and TRICARE for claims in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS), the Department of Justice announced. Choudry is a cardiologist who has treated patients in Maryland and Washington, D.C. for peripheral arterial disease. The settlement resolves allegations that, between Jan. 1, 2013 and Dec. 31, 2016, Choudry, Washington Cardiovascular Institute, Advanced Vascular Resources, and Washington Vascular Institute submitted, or caused, false claims in violation of the AKS. Specifically, the defendants allegedly induced patient referrals by providing ankle-brachial index testing on patients under agreements with the referring physicians but without collecting from the physicians the fair market value for the tests. Ankle-brachial index testing is used to detect peripheral arterial disease, which Choudry and the practices would treat.
