Judge Dismisses RICO Claims, Most Defendants in UVA Health Suit
A federal judge in the Western District of Virginia dismissed all claims against former UVA Health leaders, including ex-CEO K. Craig Kent, and ruled the University of Virginia is immune from suit as an arm of the state. Four physicians had alleged the leaders pushed fraudulent billing practices to inflate procedure costs and retaliated against them for objecting, including claims under RICO and the False Claims Act. The judge dismissed the RICO claims for a second time, finding the physicians were harmed for refusing to go along with the scheme rather than as direct targets of racketeering. Only two retaliation claims survive, both against UVA Physicians Group under the federal False Claims Act and Virginia Fraud Against Taxpayers Act, which will proceed to discovery; plaintiffs have until Nov. 4 to file a revised complaint limited to those claims.