Planned Parenthood of Ill. Settles Medicaid Billing Dispute

September 10, 2012 — Planned Parenthood of Illinois has agreed to pay $367,000 to settle a dispute over alleged overbilling of Medicaid by the group's medical director, Crain's Chicago Business reports.

The inspector general of the state's Department of Healthcare and Family Services alleged that Caroline Hoke -- an ob-gyn and PPI's medical director since 2007 -- overbilled the agency by more than $430,000 in 2006 and 2007, mostly for undocumented services. The allegations involved her work at PPI clinics and Erie Family Health Center, which separately agreed to pay $20,000 to settle the dispute.

Hoke had the fourth-highest billing amount -- $3.9 million -- to the state Medicaid program from 2009 to 2011, according to an analysis by Crain's. She has not been reimbursed through Medicaid since 2010, when the state stopped the payments, although she continued to provide services to PPI Medicaid patients.

PPI in a statement said that more than 80% of the money being paid back is for "recordkeeping matters related to billing for birth control." The organization and Erie did not admit any wrongdoing or responsibility for the overbilling as part of the settlements (Wang, Crain's Chicago Business, 9/5).