MINNEAPOLIS — A Minneapolis mobile eye surgery company and its former CEO have agreed to pay $12 million to resolve allegations that it lured physicians with illegal kickbacks in exchange for their business for nearly a decade.

The settlement announced by the U.S. attorney’s office comes after a whistleblower sued Sightpath Medical Inc. and a Bloomington surgical equipment provider.

Authorities said Sightpath provided the kickbacks from 2006 to 2015, in a way that greatly expanded its payments from government health care programs such as Medicare.

Sightpath in a statement to the Minneapolis Star Tribune said it agreed to the settlement to avoid expensive litigation. The company said it did not admit to any wrongdoing.