Athena was accused of paying under the table to push athenaClinicals software.
Electronic health records (EHR) provider Athena has agreed to pay $18.25 million to settle claims the company was involved in an illegal kickback scheme. Athenahealth Inc., an EHR vendor based in Watertown, Massachusetts, was accused of conducting kickback deals in order to promote the sale of athenaClinicals by whistleblowers. AthenaClinicals a web-based EHR portal for accessing medical documentation, patient records, and exchanging data between care sites. The software is touted as a means for healthcare professionals to „focus on delivering care.“ On Thursday, the US Department of Justice (DoJ) said that Athena’s settlement will lay accusations of violating the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) to rest. US prosecutors allege that between 2014 through September 2020, Athena provided kickbacks to healthcare providers and other EHR vendors to induce them into purchasing AthenaClinicals software. According to the complaint, three marketing programs were used to allegedly facilitate the scheme.
