In 2014, the Department of Justice alleged that Nason Medical Center, Dr. Nason and CEO Robert Hamilton billed Medicare and Medicaid for medically unnecessary tests, falsely claimed patients were receiving more expensive drugs, and misrepresented employees’ credentialing.
NMC paid a $1 million settlement to the government over those allegations in January 2015. Dr. Nason relinquished ownership of NMC around the same time, his attorney told ABC News 4, but never faced criminal charges or lost his medical license.
All five NMC urgent care centers abruptly closed in November 2015. For years, patients said they were having trouble accessing their medical records from the shuttered facilities.
Dr. Nason “had no say-so in the business matters of the company, including, but not limited to, the handling of patient records,” his attorney said. The business side was entirely Mr. Hamilton’s responsibility, Dr. Nason told ABC News 4 in February 2019.
Now, a sign hanging outside a former emergency facility in Charleston says Dr. Nason is opening a new practice there. NasonCare has no affiliation with Nason Medical Center and could open by the end of the year.
NasonCare will outsource billing to avoid allegations of intentional billing manipulation, Dr. Nason told ABC News 4.
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