Medtronic agrees to $23.5 million settlement in Kickback case

The Associated Press/New York Times: Medtronic Agrees To $23.5 Million Settlement In Kickback Case
Medtronic, the world's largest maker of medical devices, has agreed to pay $23.5 million to settle accusations that it paid kickbacks to doctors to implant its pacemakers and defibrillators, the Justice Department said Monday (12/12).

Reuters: Medtronic Settles U.S. Probe Over Doctor Kickbacks
Medtronic Inc has agreed to pay $23.5 million to settle allegations that it paid kickbacks to doctors to encourage them to use its pacemakers and defibrillators, the U.S. Justice Department said on Monday. The company was accused of seeking physicians to participate in studies and registries and paying doctors fees of between $1,000 to $2,000 per patient for information and data collected as long as they used Medtronic's devices, according to the Justice Department (12/12).

Minneapolis Star Tribune: Kickback Case Costs Medtronic $23.5 Million
Medtronic Inc. said Monday that it has agreed to pay $23.5 million to resolve allegations that it paid physicians illegal kickbacks to induce them to implant the company's pacemakers and defibrillators. The settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice comes after an investigation into payments of $1,000 to $2,000 per patient to doctors who participated in studies of devices that were already on the market. Federal officials contend that Fridley-based Medtronic solicited physicians for the studies to get them to switch from a competitor's product  - or to convince them to keep using Medtronic products (Walsh, 12/13).