New York City has agreed to pay the federal government $70 million to settle claims that it allegedly overbilled Medicaid by improperly approving home care for elderly clients.  As part of the settlement, NYC admitted that it reauthorized treatment of a number of patients without having first obtained required assessments from doctors, nurses and social workers.  The allegations came to light as the result of a whistleblower, Dr. Gabriel Feldman, who was an independent medical reviewer under contract with NYC.  Dr. Feldman filed a lawsuit under the False Claims Act and stands to recover $14.7 million of the settlement.