Overview
- The Special Masters filed a 51-page decision Monday that describes an organized scheme by five law firms to launder questionable Parkinson’s diagnoses into the settlement.
- Auditors say the firms sent players to unapproved doctors, arranged exams in places like hotel suites, and used prescriptions that masked symptoms before evaluations by settlement-approved physicians.
- The investigation tied the firms to 98 player files, of which 57 claims had been paid totaling more than $95 million and 37 pending claims are recommended for denial.
- The audit estimates losses above $87 million and reports about $20 million in attorneys’ fees from the suspect approved claims, and the court has barred the five firms from further participation.
- The Special Masters can refer the findings to federal authorities and the decision raises fresh questions about the settlement’s long-term integrity after earlier controversies such as race‑norming and forged records.