Respiratory provider agrees to $600,000 settlement

MIDDLEBURY, Conn. - J&L Medical has agreed to settle allegations that it violated state and federal regulations by using unlicensed technicians to set up CPAP and Bi-level machines. J&L president John Loyer said using patient care technicians, LPNs and others supervised by licensed RTs is common practice in the industry, but he agreed to pay $600,000. "We think it's important for our patients and the members of the medical community to understand that the government never claimed J&L Medical Services failed to deliver quality care or equipment," said Loyer, who is also co-owner of the company. "This was a matter of our disagreeing with their interpretation of Connecticut law about who can work with sleep apnea patients to do the initial setup of their CPAP machines." John Hart, a licensed RT formerly employed at J&L, filed a whistleblower complaint.