McKesson Settles False Claims for $18M; Whistleblower Share TBD
California-based pharmaceutical distributor McKesson Corporation has agreed to pay $18 million to resolve allegations that the company improperly set temperature monitors used in shipping vaccines under its contract with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. Department of Justice announced last week.
The government alleged that McKesson failed to comply with the shipping and handling requirements of its vaccine distribution contract with the CDC. Under the contract, McKesson provided distribution services, receiving vaccines purchased by the government from manufacturers and then distributing the vaccines to health care providers. The government alleged that the contract required McKesson to ensure that during shipping, the vaccines were maintained at proper temperatures by, among other things, including electronic temperature monitors set to detect when the air temperature in the box reached two degrees Celsius and below or eight degrees Celsius and above. The government alleged that McKesson failed to set the monitors to the appropriate range and, as a result, knowingly submitted false claims to the CDC for shipping and handling services that did not satisfy its contractual obligations.
The lawsuit was originally filed by Terrell Fox, a former McKesson employee, under the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act. The Act allows private parties with knowledge of fraud against the government to sue on behalf of the government and share in the recovery. Fox’s portion of the settlement has not yet been determined.
The Chanler Group, in association with the Hirst Law Group, represents whistleblowers who take action under the False Claims Act to report fraud committed against the federal and state governments. We have years of experience representing whistleblower clients who expose every kind of fraud against the government, including health care fraud, contract fraud, and tax fraud. Read more about our expertise in False Claims Act cases and how you can take action.