OCPNY Olympus Corporation (PK)

   (FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 3/2/16) 
   By Joseph Walker 

The U.S. unit of Olympus Corp. admitted it paid bribes to U.S. doctors and hospitals to promote sales of its medical devices, and agreed to pay $623.2 million in civil and criminal penalties as part of what prosecutors called the largest-ever settlement under federal anti-kickback laws.

Olympus's Latin American unit also will pay $22.8 million in U.S. criminal penalties to resolve allegations it paid nearly $3 million to government-employed health-care practitioners in Latin America to increase sales there. Prosecutors alleged, and Olympus admitted, that the payments violated the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which bars using bribes or gifts to foreign officials to win or keep business.

The settlements resolve charges brought against the company by the U.S. attorney's office for the District of New Jersey. The government alleged the U.S. bribes caused health-care providers to bill government health-care programs in violation of the False Claims Act.

"There was a relatively widespread pattern of the company using various forms of financial benefits -- cash, trips, consulting agreements -- to induce doctors, hospitals and other health-care providers to buy their stuff," Paul J. Fishman, the U.S. attorney for New Jersey, told The Wall Street Journal.

Mr. Fishman said the settlement was the largest amount paid in U.S. history for violations of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, which forbids payments to induce purchases by federal health programs. It also is the largest-ever settlement by a medical-device company, he said.

"Olympus leadership acknowledges the company's responsibility for the past conduct, which does not represent the values of Olympus or its employees," Nacho Abia, chief executive of Olympus Corp. of the Americas, said in prepared remarks Tuesday.

As part of the settlement, Olympus admitted in court documents that its senior employees and executives conspired to pay kickbacks to U.S. physicians in the form of consulting fees, trips to Japan, "lavish meals, ballooning, winery tours, golf and spa treatments."

The company also gave cash grants and equipment loans to hospitals with the aim of retaining their business and winning new contracts, Olympus admitted.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

March 02, 2016 02:48 ET (07:48 GMT)

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