Utah-based Merit Medical to pay $18 million settlement in lawsuit claiming doctor kickbacks

South Jordan-based Merit Medical Systems has agreed to pay $18 million to resolve a lawsuit alleging the company paid illegal kickbacks to doctors and other medical providers to entice them to use the company’s devices.

Merit founder, chairman and CEO Fred Lampropoulos confirmed Tuesday an agreement had been reached with the U.S. Department of Justice in the whistleblower case and that details would be released in the coming weeks. The CEO declined further comment, except to reiterate a short statement Merit issued late last week — and to say the company denied all allegations in the 2016 complaint.

“Given the mounting costs and time demands associated with the investigation, we believe this resolution is in the best interest of the business,” Lampropoulos said in Merit Medical System’s brief July 15 statement regarding the settlement. “Merit will continue to focus on our core mission: to be the most customer-friendly company in health care.”

The federal lawsuit was filed in New Jersey by a former chief compliance officer for the company, Charles J. Wolf. The nonpracticing medical doctor and 20-year health care compliance specialist has alleged that Merit used fraudulent advertising “disguised as educational grants” as well as inflated writing and speaking fees and other cash as inducements to physicians and hospitals to use several of its specialty medical devices.

Read more: https://www.sltrib.com/news/2020/07/21/utah-based-merit-medical/