On April 4, 2025, the Department of Justice announced that it had filed a lawsuit under the federal False Claims Act against Vohra Wound Physicians Management and its founder, Dr. Ameet Vohra. According to the DOJ, Dr. Vohra and his company allegedly submitted false claims to Medicare for “overbilled and medically unnecessary” wound care services. The lawsuit was filed in the Southern District of Florida.
The government’s complaint alleges that the defendants engaged “in a nationwide scheme to falsely bill Medicare for surgical debridement procedures to maximize revenue.” As noted in the DOJ’s press release, debridement is a procedure to remove impediments to healing from a wound, such as dead or unhealthy tissue, and can be accomplished in several ways, including nonsurgical and surgical methods. The government’s complaint outlines three components of the defendant’s alleged scheme:
(1) Creating a proprietary EMR software that was programmed to bill debridements as surgical procedures even when they were not;
(2) Hiring physicians without wound care experience and providing training that omitted relevant Medicare rules and intentionally conflating the definitions of surgical and nonsurgical debridement procedures; and
(3) Setting corporate debridement targets based solely on revenue goals and pressuring its physicians to meet those targets.
The complaint also alleges that the defendants also programmed their proprietary EMR software to improperly apply the Modifier 25 billing code to charge Medicare for exams that were not separately billable from the surgical debridement procedures performed on the same day.
In response to the government’s complaint, Vohra issued its own press release, stating that it has been “actively engaged in discussions with the government” since first receiving a subpoena in February 2018 and have “repeatedly sought input from the Government and Medicare Administrative Contractors regarding our billing practices and have attempted to tailor them to address the Government’s concerns. Thus, we are disappointed that the DOJ has elected to file this lawsuit.”
Vohra’s press release goes on to deny the government’s allegations and defend its practices, stating that the lawsuit was the result of “varying interpretations of ambiguous Medicare billing codes that do not clearly distinguish between selective and surgical debridements, as well as differing treatment philosophies.” Vohra concludes by stating that while it is “open to an amicable resolution with the DOJ,” it is ready to “vigorously defend itself” in court if necessary.
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The attorneys at Chilivis Grubman represent healthcare providers in connection with government investigations and False Claims Act litigation. If you need assistance with such a matter, please feel free to contact us.