whistleblower

L-3 Settles False Claims for $4.63M; Whistleblower to Get $799K

Submitted by mma on October 7, 2015
October 7, 2015
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L-3 Communications Corporation, Vertex Aerospace LLC, and L-3 Communications Integrated Systems LP (collectively, “L-3”) have agreed to pay $4.63 million to resolve allegations that they knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims for time spent by independent contractors at the military’s Continental U.S. Replacement Centers (CRC) in Fort Benning, Georgia, and Fort Bliss, Texas, the U.S. Department of Justice announced last week.  The CRCs prepare individuals for deployment by providing orientation briefings, training, health screenings, payroll processing and addressing other administrative matters.   

L-3 performed rotary aviation maintenance and support services for the U.S. Army in Afghanistan, Iraq, Egypt and Kuwait under contracts with the U.S. Air Force.  The United States alleges that L-3 knowingly overcharged the government for time their independent contractors spent at the CRCs by billing for each individual not based on the actual time that individual spent at the CRC, but based instead on the earliest arrival or latest departure time of any other individual who also processed through the center that same day. 

The allegations settled today arose from a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower, Robert A. Martin, a former L-3 independent contractor, under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  Under the act, private citizens can bring suit on behalf of the government for false claims and share in any recovery.  Mr. Martin will receive $798,675 from the recovery announced today.

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.

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Adventist Health System to Settle False Healthcare Claims for $115M; Whistleblower Award TBD

Submitted by mma on October 2, 2015
October 2, 2015
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Adventist Health System has agreed to pay the United States $115 million to settle allegations that it knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims to state and federal health care programs by maintaining improper compensation arrangements with referring physicians and by miscoding claims, the U.S. Department of Justice announced last week.  Adventist is a non-profit healthcare organization that operates hospitals and other health care facilities in 10 states. 

The settlement announced today resolves allegations that Adventist submitted false claims to the Medicare and Medicaid programs for services rendered to patients referred by employed physicians who received bonuses based on a formula that improperly took into account the value of the physicians’ referrals to Adventist hospitals.  Federal law restricts the financial relationships that hospitals and clinics may have with doctors who refer patients to them.

The settlement also resolves allegations that Adventist submitted bills to Medicare for its employed physicians’ professional services containing certain improper coding modifiers, and thereby obtained greater reimbursement for these services than entitled.

The allegations settled today arose from two lawsuits filed respectively by whistleblowers Michael Payne, Melissa Church and Gloria Pryor, who worked at Adventist’s hospital in Hendersonville, North Carolina, and Sherry Dorsey, who worked at Adventist’s corporate office, under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  The act permits private parties to file suit on behalf of the United States for false claims, and to share in any recovery.  The whistleblowers’ share 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.

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North Broward Hospital District (FL) Settles False Claims for $69.5M; Whistleblower to Get $12M

Submitted by mma on September 23, 2015
September 23, 2015
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North Broward Hospital District, a special taxing district of the state of Florida that operates hospitals and other health care facilities in the Broward County, Florida, area, has agreed to pay the federal government $69.5 million to settle allegations that it knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims by engaging in improper financial relationships with referring physicians, the Justice Department announced today.

The settlement announced today resolved allegations that the hospital district provided compensation to nine employed physicians that exceeded the fair market value of their services.  The United States contended that these agreements violated the Stark Statute and the False Claims Act.  The Stark Statute restricts the financial relationships that hospitals may have with doctors who refer patients to them.

The allegations settled today arose from a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower, Dr. Michael Reilly, under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.  Under the act, private citizens can bring suit on behalf of the government for false claims and share in any recovery.  Dr. Reilly will receive $12,045,655.51 from the recovery announced today.

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.

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PAE Govt Services and RM Asia Settle False Claims for $1.45M; Whistleblower to Get $261K

Submitted by mma on September 18, 2015
September 18, 2015
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PAE Government Services Inc. (PAE) and RM Asia (HK) Limited (RM Asia) have agreed to pay the federal government $1.45 million to resolve allegations that they knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims related to a U.S. Army contract for services in Afghanistan, the U.S. Department of Justice announced last week.

In 2007, the Army awarded PAE a contract to provide vehicle maintenance capabilities and training services for the Afghanistan National Army at multiple sites across Afghanistan.  PAE partnered with RM Asia to supply and warehouse vehicle parts.  The government alleged that former managers of PAE and RM Asia funneled subcontracts paid for by the government to companies owned by the former managers and their relatives by using confidential bid information to ensure that their companies would beat out other, honest competitors.   

The allegations resolved by this settlement arose from a lawsuit filed by Steven D. Walker, a former employee of PAE, under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and share in the recovery.  Mr. Walker will receive $261,000.

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.

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USIS Foregoes $30M to Resolve False Claims Allegations; Whistleblower Award TBD

Submitted by mma on August 20, 2015
August 20, 2015
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U.S. Investigations Services (USIS) and its parent company, Altegrity, have agreed to forego collection on $30 million worth of payments supposedly owed by the federal government in order to resolve allegations that USIS knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims, the U.S. Department of Justice announced yesterday.

USIS provided background investigations services for the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) under various fieldwork contracts.  The government alleged that USIS deliberately circumvented contractually required quality reviews of completed background investigations in order to increase the company’s revenues and profits.  Specifically, USIS allegedly devised a practice referred to internally as “dumping” or “flushing,” which involved releasing cases to OPM and representing them as complete when, in fact, not all the reports of investigations comprising those cases had received a contractually-required quality review.  The government contended that, relying upon USIS’ false representations, OPM issued payments and contract incentives to USIS that it would not otherwise have issued had OPM been aware that the background investigations had not gone through the quality review process required by the contracts.

In February 2015, Altegrity, USIS and their affiliates filed for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in Delaware.  The settlement of USIS’ FCA liability is part of a broader settlement that also resolves other matters between the United States and USIS/Altegrity that were part of the bankruptcy proceeding.

The FCA lawsuit against USIS was originally filed under the whistleblower provisions of the act by Blake Percival, a former executive at USIS.  The FCA prohibits the submission of false claims for government money or property and, under the act’s whistleblower provisions, a private party may file suit on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery.  The United States may elect to intervene and take over the case, as it did here.  Mr. Percival’s share 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.

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NuVasive to Settle False Medicare Claims for $13.5M; Whistleblower to Get $2.2M

Submitted by mma on July 30, 2015
July 30, 2015
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California-based NuVasive Inc. has agreed to pay $13.5 to the United States federal government in order to settle allegations that the company knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims to federal health care programs, the U.S. Department of Justice announced today. 

The United States alleged that between 2008 and 2013, NuVasive promoted the use of the company’s CoRoent System for surgical uses that were not approved or cleared by the federal Food and Drug Administration, including for use in treating two complex spine deformities, severe scoliosis and severe spondylolisthesis.  As a result of this conduct, the United States alleged that NuVasive caused physicians and hospitals to submit false claims to federal health care programs for certain spine surgeries that were not eligible for reimbursement. 

The settlement agreement also resolves allegations that NuVasive knowingly offered and paid illegal remuneration to certain physicians to induce them to use the CoRoent System in spine fusion surgeries, in violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute.  The illegal remuneration consisted of promotional speaker fees, honoraria and expenses relating to physicians’ attendance at events sponsored by a group known as the Society of Lateral Access Surgery (SOLAS).  SOLAS was allegedly created, funded and operated solely by NuVasive, despite its outward appearance of independence. 

The civil settlement resolves a lawsuit filed under the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act by Kevin Ryan, a former NuVasive sales representative.  The act permits private parties to file suit on behalf of the United States for false claims and obtain a portion of the government’s recovery.  As part of today’s resolution, Mr. Ryan will receive approximately $2.2 million.

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.

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Blanding Health Mart Pharmacy Settles False Claims for $8M

Submitted by mma on July 17, 2015
July 17, 2015
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Jacksonville, Fla.-based Blanding Health Mart Pharmacy has agreed to pay $8.4 million to resolve allegations that it knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims to the government, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida announced earlier this week.

The government had alleged that Blanding sought reimbursement for compounding pharmaceutical prescriptions that were not medically necessary and were written by physicians that had never actually seen the patients.  The government agreed to accept $8,441,107 to resolve these allegations.

The False Claims Act allows private parties with knowledge of fraud against the government to sue on behalf of the government and share in any recovery.  Had there been a whistleblower in this case, he or she would have been entitled to up to 30 percent of the settlement.

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.

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Covan World Wide Moving Settles False Claims for $5M; Whistleblowers to Get $1.25M

Submitted by mma on July 10, 2015
July 10, 2015
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Covan World Wide Moving, Inc., Coleman American Moving Services, Inc., and other related entities with home offices in Dothan, Ala. have agreed to pay $5 million to settle allegations that they knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims to the federal government, the U.S. Attorney’s  Office of the District of South Carolina announced yesterday.

The United States contended that Covan and others increased the weights of shipments and storage of servicemember’s and federal employee’s household goods and then submitted claims for payment to the government for the inflated weights.

The investigation began with the filing of whistleblower suits by employees of Covan’s Augusta, Georgia facility who witnessed the falsification of weight tickets ultimately used to bill the government.  The False Claim Act allows the government to recover actual damages and penalties of three times the actual damages and up to $11,000 per false claim.  This settlement includes repayment of actual damages and penalties. 

The False Claims Act allows individuals to file lawsuits with allegations that fraud has been committed against the federal government on behalf of the government.  Whistleblowers, referred to as Relators in the False Claims Act, are entitled to share in any recovery received by the government.  In this case, the two relators collectively will receive 25% of the funds of the settlement or $1,250,000.00 plus they are entitled to attorney fees. 

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.

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AstraZeneca and Cephalon Settle Medicaid False Claims for $54M; Whistleblower Award TBD

Submitted by mma on July 8, 2015
July 8, 2015
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AstraZeneca and Cephalon have agreed to pay $46.5 million and $7.5 million, respectively, to resolve allegations that the companies knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims to state and federal health care programs, the U.S. Department of Justice announced earlier this week.

Pursuant to the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, drug manufacturers are required to pay quarterly rebates to state Medicaid programs in exchange for Medicaid’s coverage of the manufacturers’ drugs.  The quarterly rebates are based, in part, on the Average Manufacturer Prices (AMPs) that the manufacturers report to the government for each of their covered drugs.  Generally, the higher the reported AMP for a drug, the greater the rebate the manufacturer pays to state Medicaid programs for the drug.  These settlements resolve allegations that AstraZeneca and Cephalon underreported AMPs for a number of their drugs by improperly reducing the reported AMPs for service fees they paid to wholesalers.  As a result, the government contends that AstraZeneca and Cephalon underpaid quarterly rebates owed to the states and caused the United States to be overcharged for its payments to the states for the Medicaid program. 

The two settlements partially resolve a lawsuit filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery.  The amounts to be received by the whistleblower in this suit, Ronald J. Streck, a pharmacist, have 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.

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LB&B Associates to Settle False Claims for $7.8M; Whistleblowers to Get $1.5M

Submitted by mma on July 6, 2015
July 6, 2015
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LB&B Associates Inc. and its principals, Lily A. Brandon and F. Edward Brandon, have agreed to pay $7.8 million to the federal government to resolve allegations that they knowingly submitted or caused the submission of false claims to the Small Business Administration’s (SBA’s) 8(a) Business Development Program for Small Disadvantaged Businesses, the U.S. Department of Justice announced today.

The government alleged that in seeking certification under SBA’s 8(a) Program, LB&B falsely represented that Lily Brandon – who satisfied the criteria for a socially and economically disadvantaged person under the program – controlled the operations of LB&B, when she did not.  Securing 8(a) certification allowed LB&B to obtain 8(a) set aside contracts from various government agencies.  Throughout the performance of these contracts, Lily Brandon allegedly failed to exercise actual control over LB&B’s operations, a key component to qualifying for the set aside contracts. 

The civil settlement resolves a lawsuit filed by Steven O. Sansbury and James T. Buechler, former employees of LB&B, under the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act, which permits private parties, known as relators, to file suit on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery.  The act permits the government either to intervene in and take over the whistleblowers’ suit, or to allow the whistleblowers to pursue the action.  In addition to alleging LB&B’s improper receipt of 8(a) set aside contracts, Mr. Sansbury and Mr. Buechler alleged that LB&B made false claims in connection with contracts it obtained pursuant to the SBA’s Mentor-Protégé Program, which allows participants to obtain set aside contracts following LB&B’s graduation from the 8(a) Program.  The United States intervened in the whistleblowers’ 8(a) claims but not the Mentor-Protégé claims.  The settlement resolves both claims, and Mr. Sansbury and Mr. Buechler will recover a total of $1.5 million of the settlement.

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.

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