Wisconsin Senior Medicare Patrol

A lawsuit claims at least six orthopedic surgeons and a Chicago hospital bilked Medicare  for surgeries physicians didn’t attend.

The lawsuit was filed by two whistleblowers, a former employee and a surgeon, The Wall Street Journal reports. The suit claims that a greedy relationship with Zimmer Holdings Inc. – a device maker – got surgeons into bad billing behavior at Rush University Medical Center.

Rush has previously settled claims with the Justice Department, according to OutpatientSurgery.net:

The lawsuit, originally filed in November 2004, was only recently released for public view in an amended form, following the medical center’s settlement of earlier allegations that it traded office space for patient referrals. Rush paid the U.S. Department of Justice $1.5 million but did not admit wrongdoing. A representative for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Chicago was not available for comment.

The hospital and surgeons deny the allegations.

If you suspect Medicare fraud, find out what you need to do at Medicare.gov.