Two Texas pain management doctors have been charged with healthcare fraud and have agreed to a settlement totaling $3.9 million.

Pain management physicians Robert Wills and Brannon Frank are accused of violating the False Claims Act after knowingly submitting false claims to federal healthcare programs including Medicaid, Medicare, and TRICARE.

The duo were former co-owners of the now-defunct Austin Pain Associates clinic located in Austin, Texas.

According to the Department of Justice, beginning in 2011, the duo knowingly urine tested patients without any individualized assessment of medical need. The doctors would order the urine tests excessively and unnecessarily in their in-house laboratory in order to bill the federal health programs.

The testing protocols that were in place were drafted by Wills and Frank and included an excessive amount of tests on the urine samples. The DOJ explains that the pair knowingly did this because the testing was a main source of income for the clinic. The settlement explains, “Dr. Frank was aware that the in-house laboratory was testing urine samples for an excessive number of metabolites, and that Austin Pain Associates could not survive without the income generated from such testing.”

The allegations against the doctors came to light after whistleblowers and former employees of Austin Pain Associates, Jennifer Nuessner and Robert Hoffman, aired their complaints.

As part of the settlement, Wills has agreed to pay $2.1 million while Frank will pay $1.8 million.

Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division explained of the settlement, “The provision of medical services should be based on a patient’s medical needs, not on a physician’s desire to increase profits. The Department of Justice is committed to taking appropriate action to safeguard the integrity of federal healthcare programs and the welfare of their beneficiaries.”

Special Agent in Charge Miranda Bennett for the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General added, “Physicians who perform medically unnecessary and excessive tests exploit patients and taxpayer-funded healthcare programs. With our law enforcement partners, we will continue to hold accountable individuals who engage in false claims practices.”