Escambia County commissioners voted to approve a $5 million settlement in a lawsuit alleging the county filed false claims under Medicare through its ambulance service.
Escambia County commissioners voted 4-0 to approve a settlement in a lawsuit brought by the county’s former medical director, Dr. Rayme Edler, under the False Claims Act.
Under the settlement, $3.5 million will be paid to the U.S. government, and the remaining $1.5 million will go to Edler.
Commission Chairman Steven Barry read a part of the settlement stipulation that the County Commission had no knowledge or any participation in any of the illegal conduct alleged in the lawsuit.
The $5 million settlement will be paid out over three years and will not come out of insurance claims, unlike previous settlements.
Edler filed a lawsuit against the county, alleging she was retaliated against for blowing the whistle on former county Emergency Management Services staff for falsifying training certifications and the county for falsely billing the federal government for ambulance services without properly certified personnel.