The first appellate decision interpreting the Eliminating Kickbacks in Recovery Act (EKRA) clarified how the law applies to marketing arrangements within the healthcare industry, McGuireWoods partners Timothy Fry and Justin Givens wrote in a Sept. 15, 2025, article in Westlaw Today.
Fry and Givens examined a recent opinion by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit that upheld a conviction for an EKRA violation. The Ninth Circuit clarified “inconsistent district court opinions in the circuit, finding that EKRA does cover payments to marketers designed to induce referrals, and is not limited to payments made to medical professionals who are actually referring the patients,” the authors wrote.
The decision, they added, “should remind recovery homes, clinical treatment facilities and laboratories that compensation structures and promotional strategies should be carefully designed to avoid even the appearance of undue influence.”
The article first appeared on McGuireWoods’ FCA Insider blog. McGuireWoods summer associate Nylah D. Custalow contributed to the article.