Whistleblower News From The Inside — May 2, 2016
By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team
New Orleans Jury Convicts Company Owner for Directing $3 Million Fraud and Kickback Scheme — Evidence introduced at trial showed that defendant’s company billed Medicare for durable medical equipment and orthotics that were not needed and/or were not provided; paid patient recruiters for the names and Medicare numbers of Medicare recipients and then used these Medicare numbers to bill Medicare, claiming that it had provided them power wheelchairs, accessories and orthotics, when the vast majority of these patients did not need and often did not receive, or even want, the equipment; and engaged in “upcoding,” billing Medicare for more expensive equipment than was actually provided. DOJ
Pennsylvania Man Charged In Alleged $35 Million Fraud Against Veterans’ Education GI Bill – The defendant’s scheme allegedly targeted veterans through his company, ED4MIL LLC, and enrolled them in unapproved online courses without their knowledge. DOJ (NJ)
Former Immunosyn Corp. CEO convicted – The SEC had alleged that Stephen D. Ferrone signed and certified public filings that misled investors about the regulatory status of its sole product called SF-1019, a drug derived from goat blood that was intended to treat a variety of ailments. SEC
Twenty-Five Miami-Area Defendants Charged with Submitting $26 Million in False Claims to the Medicare Part D Program – The defendants allegedly instructed pharmacy staff to submit false and fraudulent claims for prescription drugs that were not medically necessary and not provided to the Medicare Part D beneficiaries. Medicare beneficiaries were frequently referred to the pharmacies by patient recruiters, who received kickbacks for referring patients. DOJ
Halliburton and Baker Hughes Abandon Merger Following DOJ Suit to Block Deal – DOJ had alleged that the proposed merger, originally valued at $34 billion, would have unlawfully eliminated significant head-to-head competition between the companies in at least 23 markets crucial to the exploration and production of oil and natural gas in the United States. DOJ
Former SunTrust Mortgage VP and Loan Officers Sentenced to Prison for 24 and 15 months – The four individuals has been convicted in February for conspiracy and wire fraud related to their falsification of loan applications for borrowers, including the purchase of fake tax documents to support the false loan applications. DOJ (ED VA)
Academic Research Sheds Light on Whistleblower Weighing of Risk vs. Reward — A new study by researchers at Florida Atlantic University and Providence College has found that vivid language intended to assure potential whistleblowers they will be protected from retaliation is instead likely to evoke fear and make them less likely to report misconduct. It’s the first study to demonstrate that promoting explicit whistleblower protections can have the unintended consequence of actually inhibiting reporting of misconduct by intensifying the perceived risk of retaliation. South Florida Reporter
Ringling Bros. Circus Elephants Perform Last Show — In 1998, a whistleblower tipped off the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to the death of Kenny, a 3-year-old Asian elephant traveling with the Ringling Bros. Circus, prompting PETA to file a complaint with the US Dept. of Agriculture. Decades of litigation, protest and mounting scrutiny, as well as a shifting public opinion toward the captivity and use of wild animals for entertainment, forced the circus to phase out its long-running elephant act for good. Although the circus originally intended to maintain the act through 2018, it later chose to end the performances at least 18 months earlier than expected. WAPO