DaVita Inc. (DVA) agreed to pay roughly $55 million in a settlement of a lawsuit filed by an individual in 2002 related to the anemia drug Epogen. The dialysis-service provider said the agreement, which also includes the payment of attorneys fees, contains no findings of wrongdoing or admission of liability by the company. "DaVita and its affiliated physicians did nothing wrong and stand by their anemia management practices," the company said. In a previous SEC filing, the company identified the individual as Ivey Woodard and said it was served with a complaint under the qui tam provisions of the federal False Claims Act. DaVita also said the government investigated allegations raised by the individual; however, it chose not to file claims against DaVita. DaVita's shares closed at $97.62 on Monday and were inactive premarket. The stock is up 29% year-to-date. Write to Saabira Chaudhuri at saabira.chaudhuri@dowjones.com
