False Claims Act and Whistleblower News

The False Claims Act enables a private citizen with unique knowledge of fraud committed against the federal government (such as health care fraud, contract fraud, and tax fraud) to file a lawsuit under seal (not accessible to the public) seeking treble (triple the amount) damages on behalf of the government...
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recent posts - false claims act (FCA)

April 22, 2013
On April 16, the owner and another senior executive of Chicago’s Sacred Heart Hospital and four physicians affiliated with the facility were arrested in connection with a Medicare and Medicaid kickback and fraud scheme, the U.S. Department of Justice reported. Edward J. Novak, Sacred Heart’s owner and chief executive officer, and Roy M. Payawal, Sacred Heart’s executive vice president and chief financial officer, allegedly engaged in a number of kickback and Medicare and... full text
April 18, 2013
California-based biotechnology company Amgen, Inc. will pay the United States $24.9 million to settle allegations that Amgen knowingly caused the filing of false claims to the federal government, the U.S. Department of Justice announced. Amgen allegedly gave kickbacks to pharmacy providers Omnicare, Inc., PharMerica Corporation, and Kindred Healthcare, Inc. in return for implementation of programs that were designed to switch Medicare and Medicaid patients from competitors’ drugs to Amgen... full text
April 11, 2013
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service held a hearing on Wednesday to receive feedback on new rules and proposals for implementing elements of its whistleblower program, Reuters reported.  Some of these proposals include guidelines for whistleblower submissions, criteria for determining the size of whistleblower recoveries, and allowing whistleblowers who die during the process to leave award recovery to heirs.  Reuters also reported that attorneys representing tax informants gave IRS... full text
April 10, 2013
A federal jury found for whistleblowers in reaching a verdict that State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. knowingly provided fraudulent claims to the federal government under the flood insurance program for Hurricane Katrina regarding damage to at least one home, the San Francisco Chronicle reported on Tuesday.  In reaching its special verdict, the jury found that State Farm caused damages to the government in the amount of $250,000.  Under the False Claims Act, the relators, known as... full text
April 3, 2013
Fluor Corp. has agreed to pay a $1.1 million settlement to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act when it allegedly used federal money to pay lobbyists, the U.S. Department of Justice announced today. Fluor Hanford operated the Hazardous Materials Management and Emergency Response (HAMMER) training center for the Department of Energy from 2005 to 2009.  In 2005, HAMMER allegedly used federal money to hire two firms to lobby members of Congress and federal agencies for... full text
April 1, 2013
A former hospice physician recently secured a $750,000 settlement from the City of San Francisco after he filed complaints alleging that his layoff was the result of retaliation for whistleblower complaints that San Francisco’s Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center (“Laguna Honda Hospital”) had misused patient funds and knowingly entered into a conflict of interest. Dr. Derek Kerr, a hospice physician for over 20 years at Laguna Honda Hospital, filed complaints... full text
March 29, 2013
CDW-Government LLC (CDW-G), a wholly owned subsidiary of Illinois company CDW Corporation, has agreed to pay $5.66 million to resolve false claims allegations in connection with a U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) contract, the U.S. Department of Justice announced today. CDW-G allegedly improperly charged government purchasers for shipping, sold products to the U.S. government that were manufactured in China and other countries prohibited by the Trade Agreements Act, and underreported... full text
March 28, 2013
The University of California has agreed to pay a $1.2 million settlement to resolve allegations of falsification of medical records and poor supervision of patients, the Los Angeles Times reported yesterday. The suit was brought by whistleblower Dr. Dennis O’Connor, a former professor of anesthesiology at the UC Irvine School of Medicine.  He alleged that anesthesia was administered to patients by nurse anesthetists and residents without the required supervision by an... full text
March 27, 2013
On March 21, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit upheld the district court’s decision to find Anchor Mortgage Corporation and its CEO John Munson liable for false claims submitted in loan guaranty applications to the U.S. government, but reversed the “gross trebling” calculation of the damages in favor of “net trebling,” which reduced the total recovery. In 2010, the federal district judge found Anchor Mortgage Corporation guilty of lying when... full text
March 26, 2013
Alabama-based Caddell Construction has agreed to pay a $1.15 million settlement to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly making false reports to the Army Corps of Engineers that they had hired and were mentoring a Native American-owned company to work construction projects, the U.S. Department of Justice announced. The United States alleged that from 2003 to 2005, Caddell falsely represented in invoices and supporting documents that it was mentoring Mountain... full text