On Monday, the DOJ announced the resolution of criminal allegations and a False Claims Act (“FCA”) lawsuit a relating to a scheme to defraud the United States and obtain kickbacks in exchange for patient referrals. A major U.S. hospital chain, Tenet Healthcare Corporation and two subsidiaries, Atlanta Medical Center, Inc.
The United States has filed a False Claims Act case against Tennessee-based nursing home company, Vanguard Healthcare LLC, as well as Vanguard Healthcare Services LLC, and six of its nursing facilities. See United States vs. Vanguard, et al., case no. 3:16-cv-2380 (M.D.Tenn 2016). The lawsuit alleges that the defendants were responsible for the submission of false claims to Medicare and TennCare (Tennessee’s Medicaid program) for skilled nursing home services that were either non-existent or grossly substandard.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Philadelphia announced that several Lehigh Valley medical facilities and three doctors will pay in excess of $690,000 to settle false health care bill claims to Medicare and other federal benefits programs. The allegations under the False Claims Act were made by whistleblower Margaret Reynard against Dr.
A whistleblower’s retention and disclosure of confidential documents did not amount to breach of his employment contract, according to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.
In United States ex rel. Cieszyski v. LifeWatch Services, Case No. 13-cv-4052 (N.D. Ill.), relator and one-time LifeWatch salesperson Matthew Cieszyski alleges that his former employer violated federal and state False Claims Acts (“FCAs”) by submitting for government reimbursement claims for heart monitoring services that violated relevant Medicare and Medicaid regulations.
The U.S. Commodities and Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) has approved an award of more than $10 million to a tipster through its whistleblower program.
On March 28, the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina advanced a plaintiff-friendly interpretation of the False Claims Act’s (“FCA’s”) first-to-file rule. It recognized that naming new defendants who are related to defendants named in previously filed complaint and complicit in the alleged fraud renders the subsequent complaint sufficiently different to pass muster under the rule.
Last week, in Tyson Foods v. Bouaphakeo, — S. Ct. —-, 2016 WL 1092414, the U.S.
Respironics is to pay $34.8 million for alleged False Claims Act violations related to the sale of sleep masks designed to treat sleep apnea. Allegedly Respironics, a Murrysville, PA based company, paid kickbacks in the form of free call center services to durable medical equipment (DME) companies that purchased the masks.
On Monday, February 29, 2016, the Justice Department announced that the Lockheed Martin Corporation and its subsidiaries Lockheed Martin Energy Systems and Lockheed Martin Utility Services (collectively, Lockheed Martin) agreed to pay the United States $5 million to resolve allegations that they violated the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed a district court order dismissing the False Claims Act (“FCA”) lawsuit brought by Relator Steven Mateski against his former employer, Raytheon.
