FLORIDA – A Florida hospital agreed to pay $85 million as part of a settlement for billing Medicare for certain services by physicians who have a financial relationship with the hospital, officials announced today. The settlement by Halifax Hospital Medical Center and Halifax Staffing Inc., which is based in the Daytona Beach, Fla., came after a Halifax employee Elin Baklid-Kuna who is the Director of Physician Services, sued the hospital in 2009 under the Whistleblower’s Act. The act allows people to file a lawsuit on behalf of the government. The government can then take over the lawsuit, as it did in this case, officials said. As part of the deal and under the Whistleblower’s Act, Baklid-Kunz will get $20.8 million of the $85 million, authorities said. In this case, the government alleged that Halifax signed six medical oncologists to contracts that gave a bonus to doctors for prescription drugs and tests that they ordered, and Halifax billed to Medicare. The government also alleged that Halifax paid three neurosurgeons more than the fair market value of their work. “Financial arrangements that compensate physicians for referrals encourage physicians to make decisions based on financial gain rather than patient needs,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida A. Lee Bentley III, said: “Medical service providers should be motivated, first and foremost, by what is best for their patients, not their pocketbooks.” Under the settlement, Halifax must make reforms and submit to independent reviews for the next five years.