DaVita Gets DOJ Subpoena over Drug Claims

EL SEGUNDO, Calif.—Dialysis provider DaVita Inc. said Monday that it working to produce a wide range of documents related to pharmaceutical products in response to a federal subpoena that is connected to a civil investigation.

DaVita is working with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to gather the documents, ranging from Jan. 1, 2003, to the present, for a number of pharmaceuticals. These include Amgen’s anemia drug Epogen, American Regent’s iron treatment Venofer, Watson’s iron drug Ferrlicit, and vitamin D therapies such as Abbott’s Zemplar, Genzyme’s Hectorol.

The subpoena is in connection with the civil investigation by the Department of Justice and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia, according to DaVita.

"We respect the government's need to ensure the appropriateness of healthcare provider practices, especially during times when pharmaceutical issues involve significant expense for Medicare," said DaVita spokeswoman LeAnne Zumwalt in a statement.