Healthcare companies paid nearly 90% of fraud settlement proceeds received by DOJ in fiscal 2021, The federal government said Tuesday.

In the year ended September 30, 2021, the Justice Department’s Civil Division received $5.6 billion in False Claims Act settlements and judgments, the second-largest annual total in the law’s history. Of that, more than $5 billion was related to fraud and false claims in the healthcare industry, including managed care providers, hospitals, drug and medical device manufacturers, hospice providers, laboratories and physicians.

The Justice Department said in a press release that its health care fraud enforcement efforts are aimed at restoring funding for federal programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and Tricare, a health care program for military members and their families.

“But just as importantly, the department’s aggressive hunt for health care fraud has prevented billions of dollars in losses by deterring others who may be trying to trick the system for their own personal gain,” the department said. “In many cases, the department’s efforts also protect patients from medically unnecessary or potentially harmful conduct.”

health care 80% of settlement proceeds Between 2017 and 2020. The Justice Department noted that the $5 billion Medicare settlement did not include additional amounts recovered for the state’s Medicaid program.

Undoubtedly, the biggest FCA settlement in fiscal 2021 is the deal with prescription drug makers for their role in fueling the opioid epidemic. Purdue Pharma agreed to an unsecured bankruptcy claim worth $2.8 billion in October 2020 as part of an agreement to settle civil charges that the company promoted its drugs to health care providers for uses known to be unsafe, and Pay rebates to increase prescriptions for their drugs. Another maker, Indivior, paid $209 million to settle civil charges over misprescribing opioid addiction treatment Suboxone.

Some of the settlements relate to the popular nearly $350 billion Medicare Advantage plan, which pays a capitation amount for each patient enrolled in its plan based on risk calculations. For example, California-based nonprofit health system Sutter Health, $90 million paid to settle a lawsuit that it knowingly provided unsupported diagnostic codes for certain visits in order to increase payment. The Washington Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, formerly the Group Health Cooperative, $6.3 million paid resolve similar allegations.

There have been some settlements involving illegal kickbacks. For example, electronic health records provider Athenahealth Paid over $18 million Address claims that it invites customers and prospects to sports, entertainment, and leisure activities at all costs to boost sales.

Mail-order diabetes testing supply company Arriva Medical and its parent company agreed to pay $160 million to settle allegations that it paid rebates to Medicare beneficiaries, provided them with free diabetes testing blood glucose meters and periodically waived co-payments on diabetes testing supplies .

The settlement also involved claims to provide unnecessary medical care. In one case, SavaSeniorCare agreed to pay $11.2 million because it claimed it provided medically unreasonable, unnecessary or unskilled rehabilitation services to Medicare patients.

Of the $5.6 billion in settlements obtained under the False Claims Act, more than $1.6 billion came from lawsuits brought under the law’s qui tam or whistleblower provisions. Government paid $237 million to whistleblower who filed qui tam lawsuit.

DOJ has started in recent years List private equity owners as defendants In a False Claims Act lawsuit against healthcare companies, a department official pledged in 2020 to strengthen enforcement against these financial investors.