Fed: Company to pay $5.5M for unnecessary ambulance trips

TAMPA, Fla. – Federal authorities say a Florida ambulance company has agreed to pay about $5.5 million to resolve allegations that it defrauded Medicare by billing for unnecessary ambulance trips.

A U.S. Department of Justice news release says Tampa-based AmeriCare Ambulance Service Inc. and its sister company, AmeriCare ALS Inc., reached a settlement Tuesday with federal prosecutors. AmeriCare has also agreed to enter into an integrity agreement with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

A complaint filed last year says AmeriCare submitted fraudulent claims to Medicare and TRICARE for non-emergency ambulance transports that were not medically justified from January 2008 through December 2016. Authorities say audits and testimony from the company’s management revealed AmeriCare had created thousands of false reports and other documentation in a failed effort to support this practice.