Several recent developments may spark a renewed effort to incentivize United Kingdom (UK)-based whistleblowers who frequently provide tips to U.S.-based agencies, such as the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC). The confluence of legislative developments, remarks by the director of the UK’s Serious Fraud Office (SFO), and the British Parliament’s focus on a scandal that rocked the post office may pave the way for new legislation providing incentives for tips to government authorities in the UK.
Senate testimony focusing on the impact of the rising presence of private equity (PE) firms’ control of major healthcare providers touched on the “substantial overlap between the risks associated with private equity ownership of healthcare companies and the activities targeted by the False Claims Act (FCA), a federal law that establishes liability for individuals or companies that defraud governmental programs.” See O’Grady Statement.pdf (senate.gov).
As experienced whistleblower counsel, with more than a decade of representing emergency providers in false claims act (FCA) cases against large hospital systems and national hospital-based staffing groups, the recent investigation by the US Senate into the impact of private equity on emergency care is no surprise.
Takeaways:
- FY 2023 saw the most FCA settlements and judgments ever.
- $2.69B in total recoveries is an uptick from 2022’s down year but still below historical norms.
- New non-qui tam cases surged to the highest in history as the Department of Justice’s pandemic fraud crackdown gains steam.
On February 8, 2024, the US Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in Murray v. UBS Securities, LLC, No. 22-660 (U.S. 2024) restoring a $900K jury verdict in favor of a whistleblower under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) related to publicly-traded businesses and their financial reporting.
Medicare Advantage Organizations have come under increased fire as their parent companies continue to acquire more healthcare practices across the country. Experts suggest that this vertical integration has led to inflated Medicare spending, with providers facing new pressure to diagnosis chronic conditions that fetch more money for Medicare Advantage plans.
Marc Raspanti and Pamela Coyle Brecht‘s presentation “A Practitioner’s Guide to American Whistleblower Programs” is now available through World Online Lawyers With Excellent Practice (WOLEP). Mr. Raspanti and Ms.
Key Takeaways
- Largest year ever for whistleblower awards (nearly $600 million in total)
- Largest single whistleblower award ever ($279 million to an individual whistleblower)
- Largest year for whistleblower tip volume (over 18,000 tips submitted to the SEC)
- The SEC underscores its whistleblower protection efforts through Rule 21F-17 enforcement
On November 14,
On August 14, 2023, in a rare whistleblower award opinion, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) denial of a whistleblower award in Granzoti v. Securities and Exchange Commission, 2023 WL 519503 (11th Cir.). The opinion establishes that eligibility for SEC whistleblower awards follows an actual causation standard – i.e.
On July 12, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) awarded $9 million to a whistleblower who submitted a tip through the SEC’s Whistleblower Program. Per agency policy, the Award Order is heavily redacted and does not reveal the nature of the enforcement action, let alone the whistleblower’s identity.
