Representation of Brookdale Senior Living, Diversicare and NHC HealthCare: U.S. ex rel. Cook v. Integrated Behavioral Health, Inc., No. 2:20-cv-877, 2023 WL 2617399 (N.D. Ala. Mar. 23, 2023)

We represented Brookdale Senior Living, Diversicare and NHC HealthCare in a qui tam lawsuit against 23 defendants alleging that a psychiatrist provided free nursing services to nursing homes in exchange for patient referrals in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Law. On March 23, 2023, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama dismissed the case and determined that the relators’ complaint represented a “shotgun pleading” in violation of Eleventh Circuit standards and also failed to plead that any of the defendants submitted or caused false claims to be submitted with a sufficient indicia of reliability and failed to meet the heightened pleading requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 9(b). The Bass, Berry & Sims team included Matt Curley, Brian Roark, Anna Grizzle, Glenn Rose, Angie Bergman, Wes Love and Peter Rathmell.

We represented Brookdale Senior Living, Diversicare and NHC HealthCare in a qui tam lawsuit against 23 defendants alleging that a psychiatrist provided free nursing services to nursing homes in exchange for patient referrals in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute and the Stark Law. On March 23, 2023, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama dismissed the case and determined that the relators’ complaint represented a “shotgun pleading” in violation of Eleventh Circuit standards and also failed to plead that any of the defendants submitted or caused false claims to be submitted with a sufficient indicia of reliability and failed to meet the heightened pleading requirements of Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 9(b). The Bass, Berry & Sims team included Matt Curley, Brian Roark, Anna Grizzle, Glenn Rose, Angie Bergman, Wes Love and Peter Rathmell.