CVS Reaches Settlement With Department of Justice.Business/Technology Editors & Health/Medical Writers WOONSOCKET, R.I.--(BW HealthWire)--Aug. 28, 2001 CVS (1) (Concurrent Versions System) A version control system for Unix that was initially developed as a series of shell scripts in the mid-1980s. CVS maintains the changes between one source code version and another and stores all the changes in one file. Corporation said today that it has entered into a settlement agreement with the United States Department of Justice “Justice Department” redirects here. For other uses, see Department of Justice. The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is a Cabinet department in the United States government designed to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States , the Office of Inspector General Noun 1. Office of Inspector General - the investigative arm of the Federal Trade Commission OIG independent agency - an agency of the United States government that is created by an act of Congress and is independent of the executive departments of the Department of Health and Human Services Noun 1. Department of Health and Human Services - the United States federal department that administers all federal programs dealing with health and welfare; created in 1979 Health and Human Services, HHS , and certain state attorneys general with respect to allegations of over-billing concerning so-called "partial-fill" prescriptions covered by federal and state health care insurance programs, including Medicaid and TRICARE. The settlement arose from lawsuits filed against several companies in the late 1990s, including CVS. A partial-fill prescription situation arises when a pharmacy pharmacy, art of compounding and dispensing drugs and medication. The term is also applied to an establishment used for such purposes. Until modern times medication was prepared and dispensed by the physician himself. In the 18th cent. does not have the full amount of the requested medication on hand and therefore only initially dispenses enough of the medication to the customer to cover a portion of the prescription. At CVS, the customer is told at the time of the partial filling to return later to pick up the remainder. On rare occasions, the patient would not return to pick up the remainder of the prescription even after CVS called and reminded them to do so. Unfortunately, in those instances in the past state and federal health programs may have been mistakenly billed for a full prescription when customers had not returned to complete their prescription. Under the settlement, CVS has entered into a Corporate Integrity Agreement, which includes comprehensive audit and compliance procedures and other steps aimed at promoting compliance with federal health care program requirements as they relate to the submission of pharmacy claims. These procedures complement CVS's existing company-wide compliance program. CVS also agreed to pay a settlement of $4 million to be divided among the federal government and affected states. "Any isolated instances of overbilling for partially filled prescriptions were inadvertent. CVS is committed to the highest standard of ethical conduct in all of its business dealings," said Todd Andrews Christopher Stephen "Todd" Andrews (October 6, 1901 – October 11, 1985) was an Irish public servant. Andrews was born in Dublin, but soon acquired the nickname "Todd", because of his perceived resemblance to an English comic strip hero. , Director of Corporate Communications Corporate communications is the process of facilitating information and knowledge exchanges with internal and key external groups and individuals that have a direct relationship with an enterprise. at CVS. "We are pleased to have cooperated fully with the government and put this matter behind us." |
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