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Drug Lab To Pay $256M Federal Settlement

BOSTON (AP) — A drug testing lab has agreed to pay the federal government $256 million following allegations it billed federal healthcare programs for medically unnecessary testing.

U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Carmen Ortiz announced Monday that Millennium Health will pay $227 million to resolve allegations it billed Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal healthcare programs for unnecessary urine drug testing from Jan. 1, 2008 through May 20, 2015.

The San Diego-based company, formerly Millennium Laboratories, will also pay $10 million to resolve allegations it submitted false claims for medically unnecessary genetic testing from Jan. 1, 2012 through May 20, 2015.

The company also reached a $19 million settlement with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Ortiz said the company increased medical costs without serving patients' needs.

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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