When Self Reporting Seems to Pay Off: DOJ’s First Healthcare Declination Under Its New Corporate Enforcement Policy
By: Joshua D. Hill
Background
On July 29, 2026, the Department of Justice, National Fraud Enforcement Division, in conjunction with the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey, announced a declination to prosecute Campus Eye Management Holdings LLC and its subsidiary, Campus Eye Management LLC (collectively, Campus Eye), under the DOJ’s Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy, while simultaneously unsealing a seven-count indictment against the founder of the affiliated optometry practice and ambulatory surgery center (ASC). Campus Eye is a management services organization that provided administrative, back-office, and billing services to an optometry practice and held a management interest in an affiliated ASC. The DOJ’s declination was tied to Campus Eye’s timely and voluntary self-disclosure, full and proactive cooperation, remediation and compliance enhancements, agreement to continue cooperating, and commitment to compensate victims, with the Department noting the absence of aggravating circumstances warranting prosecution. In accepting a $1,000,000 disgorgement payment, the DOJ cited an inability-to-pay analysis showing that a higher amount would endanger the company’s viability, despite approximately $3,700,000 in reimbursements associated with the alleged scheme.
The Individual Indictment
The DOJ charged E. Bruce DiDonato, 71, of Princeton, New Jersey, with conspiracy to commit health care fraud, conspiracy to violate the Anti-Kickback Statute, two counts of health care fraud, and three counts of paying illegal health care kickbacks, alleging a yearslong scheme running from at least 2015 through March 2023. According to the indictment, the scheme involved billing Medicare for duplicative or medically unnecessary diagnostic eye tests tied to surgeries at the ASC, paying kickbacks and bribes to ophthalmologists to induce referrals, and concealing payments through sham consulting agreements and “flat fee” arrangements. The indictment alleges approximately $3.4 million in fraudulent Medicare claims, of which approximately $1 million was paid. The DOJ emphasized that Campus Eye received a declination while the individual alleged to have orchestrated the conduct was charged, underscoring the policy’s focus on individual accountability paired with corporate cooperation and remediation.
The Declination
The DOJ’s declination letter cites multiple factors under the Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy, including Campus Eye’s swift self-report, comprehensive cooperation (such as providing facts about involved individuals and historical claims data), and timely remediation through policy revisions, enhanced compliance staffing, training, and ongoing risk assessments and monitoring. As part of the resolution, Campus Eye agreed to disgorge $1,000,000 within 90 days to compensate victims and to continue cooperating with ongoing investigations and prosecutions. The DOJ publicly framed this as the first declination of a health care company under the Department-wide Corporate Enforcement Policy announced in March 2026.
Key Takeaways
This resolution seems to provide a concrete roadmap: prompt self-disclosure, full cooperation (including data-driven assistance), and measurable remediation and compliance enhancements can yield a declination even in serious misconduct contexts. Notably, at the same time, the DOJ pursued charges against the alleged individual wrongdoer, signaling that corporate cooperation and remediation will not shield culpable executives. The DOJ also demonstrated flexibility on financial remediation through an inability-to-pay assessment that balanced disgorgement with organizational viability.
Firm Experience
Pietragallo Gordon Alfano Bosick & Raspanti LLP represents healthcare providers, executives, and companies in government investigations, False Claims Act matters, and criminal healthcare fraud inquiries. Our team assists clients in assessing self-disclosure options, structuring cooperation, and designing and implementing sustainable compliance enhancements tailored to DOJ expectations. We maintain an office in Marlton, New Jersey, to serve clients throughout New Jersey in high-stakes government enforcement matters.
