St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center has settled a False Claims Act complaint for $516,527 amidst claims that it overbilled Medicare for a prostate cancer treatment. The drug Lupron is an injectable that is used to treat prostate cancer in men, as well as endometriosis and fibroids in women. The treatment for males and females each have a separate billing code,
Following the conviction of cardiologist Dr. John R. McLean on six charges of health care fraud offenses, Peninsula Regional Medical Center in Salisbury, Maryland has agreed to pay $1.8 million to settle allegations that the hospital failed to prevent the doctor from inserting medically unnecessary cardiac stents. The $1.8 million settlement is being paid under the False Claims Act.
In response to a recent New York Times Article (Insiders Sound an Alarm Amid a Natural Gas Rush, June 25, 2011) concerning inflated projections for the production of natural gas from three shale gas formations, the SEC has issued subpoenas to at least two producers, Quicksilver Resources, Inc. and Exco Resources,
The new SEC whistleblower provisions take effect today. A new website is up and running regarding this program:
The IRS gave its 2010 report to Congress on the Use of Section 7623, more commonly known as the IRS Whistleblower Law. Some of its highlights include an increase in staffing in the department from 17 to 21 during fiscal year 2010. Additionally, the IRS has invested in a new software program.
The jury trial in the civil lawsuit against Blackwater (now Xe Services), “hangs by a thread,” U.S. District Court Judge T.S. Ellis III stated, after throwing out several claims against the company. The case was initially brought in 2008 under the False Claims Act by Melan Davis, a former Blackwater employee.
A Kuwaiti food supplier could face charges of defrauding the U.S. government as federal prosecutors investigate claims against The Public Warehouse Company, also known as Agility. The alleged fraud is to the tune of $68 million, and involves a complex scheme of funding formulas used to defraud contracts to supply troops in Iraq,
U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth has ruled against the largest private contractor in Iraq and Afghanistan in a lawsuit brought by the U.S. government. Houston based contractor KBR Inc.’s request to dismiss a $100 million lawsuit involving false claims for private security in Iraq was denied on August 3.
The number of Qui Tam false claims cases has grown by double digits each year, since amendments were made to the False Claims Act (FCA) in 1986. Approximately 7,200 Qui Tam cases have been filed since 1987, according to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The major trend, in addition to the increase in filings,
Between January 2009 and June 2011, the DOJ recovered more than $7.3 billion in civil settlements and judgments under the False Claims Act. Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division Tony West stated that the DOJ “has never been more aggressive—or more successful—in the anti-fraud battle as it has in the last two years.” State recoveries are also reaching record-highs and looking to pass or amend aggressive false claims statutes patterned after the FCA.
If you are aware of any person, corporation or entity that you think may be violating the False Claims Act, securities, commodities, tax, anti-money laundering, or sanctions laws, contact us today.