Three weeks before a trial was scheduled to begin in federal court in Boston, Pfizer has agreed to pay more than $784 million to settle allegations that it overcharged state Medicaid programs for the Protonix heartburn drug. This 12 year old case, which was filed by two separate whistleblowers under the qui tam provisions of…
Tampa Radiology Center Accused of Lax Physician Supervision to Pay $8.7M
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida announced today that Rose Radiology Centers Inc., a provider of radiology services with offices in multiple locations in the greater Tampa area, has agreed to pay $8.71 million to the government to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by billing federal…
Largest Nursing Home Therapy Provider in the US to Pay $125 Million to Resolve Whistleblower Case
Contract nursing home therapy providers Kindred/RehabCare will pay $125 million to resolve a False Claims Act lawsuit alleging that they caused skilled nursing facilities to submit false claims to Medicare for rehabilitation therapy services that were not reasonable, necessary and skilled, or that never occurred, the Department of Justice announced today. RehabCare is the largest provider…
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces $39M Fraud Recovery From Qualitest Pharmaceutical
Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that Qualitest Pharma would pay $39M to resolve charges initially brought to light by a physician whistleblower that it sold sub-potent fluoride tablets to Medicaid and other government health programs. The government alleged, and Qualitest admitted, that Qualitest violated the False…
Recoveries in False Claims Act Cases Top $3.5B in FY 2015; Whistleblowers Receive $597M in Awards
The Department of Justice announced today that it recovered more than $3.5 billion in settlements and judgments from civil cases involving fraud and false claims against the government in FY 2015. The DOJ stated that this is the fourth year in a row that more than $3.5 billion has been recovered in cases filed under…
Wisconsin Laboratory to Pay $8.5M to Resolve Medicare Fraud Charges
United States Attorney for the Western District of Wisconsin, announced today that Pharmasan Labs, Inc. and NeuroScience, Inc., along with their two founders, have agreed to pay $8.5 million to the United States to resolve False Claims Act allegations in case brought by a former billing manager for Pharmasan under the qui tam whistleblower provisions…
University of Florida to Pay $19M to Settle Allegations of Grant Fraud
The University of Florida will pay the United States more than $19 million to settle allegations that the university improperly charged the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for salary and administrative costs on hundreds of federal grants, the Department of Justice announced today. The University of Florida receives millions of dollars in grant…
For-Profit College to Pay $95.5 Million to Settle Claims of Illegal Recruiting
Education Management Corp. (EDMC), the second-largest for-profit education company in the country, will pay the United States $95.5 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by falsely certifying that it was in compliance with Title IV of the Higher Education Act and state statutes. The primary allegation was that EDMC unlawfully recruited…
More than 450 Hospitals Pay $257M to Resolve Allegations of Unapproved Cardiac Procedures
The Department of Justice announced today that it has reached 70 settlements involving 457 hospitals in 43 states for more than $250 million related to cardiac devices that were implanted in Medicare patients in violation of Medicare’s National Coverage Determination (NCD) requirements. The NCD provides that devices known as implantable cardiac defibrillators (ICD) generally should…
Warner Chilcott Pays $125M for Kickback Allegations; Former Pres. Indicted
Warner Chilcott agreed to pay $125 million to settle allegations that the company paid kickbacks to doctors under the guise of medical education events and speaker fees. The company will also plead guilty to the conduct set forth in the information, which alleges that: Warner Chilcott employees, at the direction of company management, provided payments,…