The Arizona-based operator of a senior living community has agreed to pay $4.25 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act (FCA) by soliciting and receiving a kickback from a nationwide home health agency (HHA) operator in order to facilitate referrals from Watermark retirement homes. Watermark Retirement Communities LLC is a senior living community operator based in Tucson, Arizona, that manages 79 retirement homes across the country. The United States alleged that the HHA operator purchased two of Watermark’s HHAs in Arizona to induce referrals of Medicare beneficiaries living in Watermark residential communities. The scheme was designed around eight Watermark retirement homes in five states (Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, and Pennsylvania), where the two companies had overlapping operations.
The United States alleged that from Jan. 1, 2014, through Oct. 31, 2020, Watermark caused the HHA operator to submit false claims for payments to Medicare for services provided to Medicare beneficiaries referred as a result of the kickback transaction. The Antikickback Statute prohibits parties who participate in federal healthcare programs from knowingly and willfully soliciting or receiving any remuneration in return for referring an individual to, or arranging for the furnishing of any item or services for which payment is made by, a federal healthcare program.
