Medical device maker Medtronic has been accused by a whistleblower of hiring spinal surgeon Dr. Thomas Zdeblick to edit an influential spine journal to push positive and premature data on its bone growth stimulant Infuse. The qui tam whistleblower lawsuit was filed in July 2011 and alleges the firm violated the Medicare False Claims Act by filing reimbursement claims driven by illegal kickbacks. According to MassDevice.com, whistleblower Joanne Hartwig, implicates Zdeblick for his part in furthering the company’s Infuse marketing by taking over as sole editor-in-chief of the Journal of Spinal Disorders, which he renamed the Journal of Spinal Disorders and Techniques.
