NYU and UPMC agree to end specified pediatric services and pay $9.45 million to resolve federal investigations
Oct 11, 2026 edition · GC-2026-0103 · Published 2026-10-11 · Version 4 · Settled
NYU and UPMC agreed to stop specified pediatric services and pay a combined $9.45 million to resolve federal investigations. The agreements are entity-specific resolutions of disputed allegations, with cooperation credit and no determination of liability.
What happened
On September 18, DOJ announced agreements resolving investigations into NYU Langone Hospitals and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center concerning potential violations of federal law in their provision of gender-affirming care to minors. The announced commitments cover puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgical procedures for minors. NYU agreed to pay $8.5 million and UPMC $950,000. These are the terms DOJ reported for the two organizations, rather than a court ruling that imposes the same service restrictions on other hospitals. Both systems expressly denied the allegations, and DOJ stated that liability had not been determined.
The resolutions sit within a wider DOJ investigation examining potential violations of the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, the False Claims Act and other federal healthcare laws. The release identifies alleged use of false diagnosis codes to obtain payment from federal programs and private insurers as one billing concern under investigation. DOJ also credited both systems for significant cooperation, including ongoing cooperation concerning other entities. That combination of service commitments, payment terms and cooperation credit explains the enforcement significance: the announcement concerns negotiated resolutions and continuing investigations, not an adjudication of every disputed clinical or billing claim.
Scope and timing
- Authority status
- Settled
- Applicability
- Operationally relevant
- Audience
- Health systems, Provider networks
- Jurisdiction
- Federal, New York, Pennsylvania
Why it matters
These entity-specific resolutions illustrate coordinated billing and service-line investigations. They do not establish a general prohibition applicable to every provider.
Recommended action
Counsel should assess actual federal and state requirements, claim support, consent and pharmacy controls. Other organizations should not treat these agreements as their own service-termination order.
Case details
- agencies
- U.S. Department of Justice, HHS Office of Inspector General, Food and Drug Administration Office of Criminal Investigations
- entities
- NYU Langone Hospitals, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
- action Type
- Resolution agreement
- event Date
- 2026-09-18
- alleged Conduct
- Potential violations involving pediatric services and allegedly false diagnosis codes used to obtain federal program and private-insurer payment. The institutions denied the allegations, and there was no determination of liability.
- resolution
- NYU agreed to pay $8.5 million, UPMC agreed to pay $950,000, and both agreed to cease the specified services for minors.
Operational lessons
- Service-line decisions require coordinated legal, coding, pharmacy, and executive oversight.
- Diagnosis codes used to support payment need contemporaneous clinical support.
- Cooperation can materially shape a resolution even when allegations are denied.
Sources
- DOJ Secures Agreements with NYU and UPMC to End Pediatric Gender-Affirming CareOfficial · U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Public Affairs · 2026-09-18 · Source review 2026-10-11
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