Kaiser suit alleges $7-million theft

A subsidiary of healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente has filed a lawsuit in California accusing a former employee responsible for investigating insurance fraud claims of embezzling $7 million.

The suit by Kaiser Foundation Health Plan accuses Michael Albert Quinn of submitting invoices for investigative services that were not performed or not justified over a 16-year span after he joined the company in 1998.

Quinn, 45, worked in Oakland and was responsible for hiring investigators to conduct surveillance on people who were suspected of filing fraudulent claims, the suit says. It says he was authorized to approve charges of as much as $50,000.

The lawsuit, which was filed last year, says Quinn stopped working at Kaiser in 2014.

The San Francisco Chronicle, which first reported the suit, said Sunday that Quinn did not return phone calls, messages left at his listed addresses or emails. Associated Press’ efforts to reach Quinn were unsuccessful.

Quinn was dropped by his attorney, Terry Duree, according to the newspaper. A call to Duree by the AP to try to determine whether Quinn had a new attorney was not immediately returned.

Kaiser spokesman John Nelson told the Chronicle in a statement that Kaiser Permanente “seeks to recover assets that it believes have been improperly diverted.”

The case filed in Alameda County is set to go to trial in October.

Quinn was previously convicted of offering false evidence and embezzlement in separate cases that were not connected to the Kaiser allegations, the Chronicle said, citing public records.

Times researcher Scott Wilson contributed to this report.