qui tam Tag

FThe Anti-Kickback Statute, 42 U.S.C. § 1320a-7b(b) (the “AKS”), prohibits the payment of kickbacks in any form as an inducement for the referral or provision of healthcare services that are reimbursed by federal health care programs, but since there are exceptions and exceptions to the exceptions it is...

The False Claim Act, also referred to as the “Lincoln Law,” is a very well-known whistleblower law utilized by some of the best whistleblower law firms resulting in hundreds of millions of dollars of whistleblower awards each year. This qui tam statute allows private citizens through the use a False Claims...

The Small Business Administration (“SBA”) recently announced that it has identified over $80 billion in COVID-19 relief loans that may have been fraudulently obtained, a significant portion attributable to PPP Loan Fraud.  The government is starting to retroactively examine these loans and insiders who blow...

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, commonly known as HIPAA, is intended to protect the privacy of patients’ healthcare information, and levies heavy fines to anyone who discusses confidential patient information in public. HIPAA compliance is a must for everyone in the US medical...

Now more than ever, it’s important to promptly report PPP Loan Fraud, and other COVID related fraud with the use of a False Claims Act Whistleblower law firm. At the 2022 State of the Union Address, it was announced that the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) will name a Chief Prosecutor for fraud related to the...

In 2021, the SEC Whistleblower Program awarded over $560 million to whistleblowers who provided insider information about securities law violations primarily through the use of an SEC whistleblower attorney. Pursuant to the Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Provision, an SEC whistleblower can receive between 10% and...

When reporting a violation to the SEC through the use of an SEC whistleblower law firm, it is useful for a whistleblower to be aware of the signs of accounting fraud. Whistleblowers that report to The SEC Whistleblower Program about potential violations of federal securities laws can receive significant...

In December 2021, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Arun G. Rao highlighted some of recent enforcement priorities of the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), including COVID fraud, including PPP loan fraud, overprescribing opioids, and clinical trial fraud, all matters which whistleblowers can raise utilizing the...

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has awarded hundreds of millions of dollars to SEC whistleblowers. The SEC’s robust whistleblower program investigates a wide variety of securities violations, including pump-and-dump schemes, boiler rooms, publishing false information to manipulate stock prices,...

Background: The False Claims Act Provides Substantial Whistleblower AwardsThe False Claims Act empowers regular, everyday people, working with a whistleblower law firm, to bring a lawsuit on behalf of the government to stop someone else from cheating the government. In return for blowing the whistle on such...

Whistleblower awards have continued on a record pace this year for individuals who blew the whistle the right way with the right whistleblower law firm.  Record-setting whistleblower awards were issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), as...

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has issued a whistleblower award of over $24 million to a former safety engineer for Hyundai who reported to NHTSA in 2016 that the company was failing to address a design flaw linked to its Theta II engines, leaving the engines prone to seizing up...

With the unprecedented wave of government spending to combat the effects of the pandemic (see $1.9 trillion spending bill passed earlier this year), we project that a record amount of fraudulent claims for pandemic-relief money have been and will be submitted, making qui tam suits under the False Claims Act...

Durable medical equipment (DME) fraud is one of the leading ways that suppliers and physicians defraud Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE. DME is defined as supplies or equipment ordered by a health care provider for everyday or extended use. Examples might include neck, back, or leg braces; wheelchairs;...

On September 15, 2021, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it has now paid more than $1 billion to over two hundred whistleblowers over the course of the program’s 10-year history, including awards of more than $500 million in FY 2021 alone. On the same day, the agency issued awards of...

In 2018, Senator Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) penned an op-ed for the New York Times, decrying such wasteful Pentagon spending as $14,000 for individual 3-D printed toilet seat lids, cups costing $1,280, $436 for hammers, $117 soap dish covers and $999 pliers. As Senator Grassley – father of the modern False...

The False Claims Act law firm of Brown, LLC is hailing the introduction of bipartisan legislation to improve an important process for reducing fraud against the government, which results in hundreds of millions of dollars of whistleblower awards each year. In July 2021, senators introduced Senate Bill 2428,...

The Department of Justice (DOJ) released its annual False Claims Act statistics for fiscal year 2020, proving that False Claims Act litigation and enforcement remained at a healthy level through the COVID-19 pandemic. Of note, the DOJ recovered over $2.2 Billion in fiscal year 2020 under the False Claims Act. Nearly 75% of that recovery was from proceedings brought by whistleblowers under the...

In 2016, a whistleblower recently received nearly a million dollar whistleblower award for blowing the whistle on the emerging, but controversial medical injection practice.  Viscosupplements are a frequent target of False Claims Act (FCA) investigations and lawsuits on the basis of medical necessity and off-label use. If your medical practice or clinic prescribes and/or administers...

Here’s 22.5 million reasons why you should consult with a whistleblower law firm if you’re aware of any Medicare Fraud or Medicaid Fraud. A whistleblower has once again proven the importance of vigilance. This whistleblower’s courage led to a $22.5 million civil settlement to resolve allegations of Medicare fraud and Medicaid fraud in violation of the False Claims Act. Doctors Care, P.A....

Brown, LLC offers free consultations for environmental whistleblowers and can walk you through how to blow the whistle on polluters.  You don’t have to wait for the government to do something about pollution. Concerned citizens can use the power of the courts to stop polluters cold.  False Claims Act Suits You can stop companies that use fraud in order to get around...

We’re often asked are you the Best Whistleblower Lawyer or Best Whistleblower Law Firm?  The answer is as lawyerly as it gets, the best whistleblower lawyer is one that has experience in the subject matter of the case that you wish to file and that you connect with.  There’s an important preceding question to ferret out the best law firm for the action you want to file and that...

As one of the premiere whistleblower law firms in the country, we are often asked what makes a qui tam successful under the False Claims Act.  Whistleblower actions are unique and not just about the ABC’s, but here we’ll start with the C’s and the next blog will go into the challenging Q’s of Qui Tam....

Whistleblower Tax Fraud Law Firm Hails New False Claims Act Legislation In New York Seeking to Expand Tax Fraud Liability The Whistleblower Tax Fraud Lawyers at Brown, LLC are hailing the introduction of new New York False Claims Act legislation that expands whistleblower awards for insiders who expose fraud and ends some legal loopholes.  The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the...

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently addressed the ever-shifting landscape regarding the ability of a whistleblower lawsuit to proceed, if the government wants a dismissal under the False Claims Act.. The False Claims Act was enacted to prevent and penalize fraudulent activities committed against the...

In a massive whistleblower settlement , New Jersey Based Pharmaceutical company, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, on June 1, 2020, agreed to pay over $642 million in two separate claims under the False Claims Act (“FCA”) for provisions related to Medicare Fraud and kickbacks in violation of the Anti-Kickback statute. The payments were made in the light of the Company’s alleged illegal...

The False Claims Act has been a particularly effective tool in combatting the opioid crisis when wielded with the right whistleblower law firm and couching the epidemic as an issue of Medicare Fraud and Medicaid Fraud.  Indivior Solutions, along with its parent companies, Indivior Inc. and Indivior plc has agreed to pay $600 million to resolve civil and criminal liabilities to resolve...

Some of the best whistleblower law firms have invoked the “Lincoln Law”, one of the oldest and most powerful statutes of America, entitled the False Claims Act (“FCA”) or sometimes colloquially referred to as the Whistleblowers Act has been increasingly invoked during recent times, with recoveries over $3 billion for each fiscal year in the last decade. The qui tam provisions of the Act allow...

Under The False Claims Act A meaty whistleblower award of 25% went to a courageous individual for exposing Medicare Fraud by filing a False Claims Act lawsuit with her whistleblower law firm.  Based on the $1.6 million settlement, the courageous individual stands to receive $400,000 as a...

The False Claims Act is a potent tool for whistleblowers to help the government recover funds that were wrongfully billed and footed by the taxpayer.  Whistleblowers are incentivized to come forward with information and the whistleblower in this case received a whistleblower award of nearly $3 million...

According to noted whistleblower lawyer Jason T. Brown, the SEC has stepped up enforcement and whistleblower awards for individuals that have provided crisp, targeted information that leads to enforcement action.  This week the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) awarded almost $700,000 to an SEC...

Healthcare Fraud Healthcare fraud is rampant and it’s estimated that up to 10 cents of every dollar spent on healthcare costs is fraudulent.   This impacts the taxpayer and the insured pretty hard and if the fraud could be eliminated there could be a 10% reduction in costs which in turn benefits everyone. So, if you have information about a healthcare provider or an individual...

Many people, businesses, and communities have been adversely impacted by COVID and our hearts, thoughts, and prayers go out to every one of them.  The government has stepped in and offered a great deal of money, some with conditions on it and some with questionable oversight. The Department of Justice has already stepped in and arrested individuals who were allegedly engaged in some...

Saber Healthcare Group LLC , a consortium of assisted living facilities in seven states, has agreed to reimburse the taxpayers of the United States $10 million for alleged violations under the False Claims Act (“FCA”).  It was alleged that Saber’s skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) submitted false claims to Medicare for unreasonable, unnecessary services.  According to Assistant...

PART I – FRAUD AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT & THE FALSE CLAIMS ACT (“FCA”) Who the FCA Protects If the information you seek to disclose relates to fraud against the federal government, you’ll find you’re not alone. Fraud against the government costs billions of taxpayer dollars each year and it’s one of the most prevalent forms of fraud anywhere. Fortunately, there is a federal law...