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Eighth Circuit Rules That Public Disclosure Bar Applies in Drug Price Inflation Suit

Posted 05/31/17

Early this month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit declined to revive a whistleblower’s False Claims Act (FCA) suit, ruling that prior litigation and government reports triggered the statutory public disclosure bar, even though the public disclosures at issue did not mention the defendants in the case. The case, United States ex rel. Lager v. CSL Behring. LLC, concerned fraud in the prescription drug...

Tagged in: Court Decision, FCA Federal, Pharma Fraud, Public Disclosure and Public Information,

Fraudster of the Week -- Monarch Medical Group

Posted 04/28/17

Last week, California state prosecutors charged 26 individuals, including 21 physicians and 2 pharmacists, in connection with a kickback scheme orchestrated by Tanya and Christopher King, the owners of a practice management company called Monarch Medical Group and other related companies. If convicted, the involved physicians could face up to 25 years in prison and the pharmacists could face up to 28 years. ...

Tagged in: Catch of the Week, Compounding Pharmacy Fraud, Pharma Fraud, Private Insurance Whistleblower Reward Programs, Provider Fraud,

Walgreens Settles Whistleblower Suit over Alleged Medi-Cal Fraud

Posted 04/21/17

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team Illinois-based drugstore giant Walgreens, with roughly 630 stores in California, agreed to pay $9.86 million to resolve allegations it violated the False Claims Act by knowingly submitting claims to California’s Medi-Cal program not supported by applicable diagnosis and documentation requirements. The Medi-Cal program, administered by the California Department of Health Care...

Tagged in: FCA Federal, Lack of Medical Necessity, Medicaid, Pharma Fraud, Whistleblower Case, Whistleblower Rewards,

The Government’s Struggle to Hold Opioid Manufacturers Accountable

Posted 04/3/17

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team In 2011 the DEA was focused on fighting the growing opioid epidemic and targeted Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals, one of the largest manufacturers of oxycodone. The government alleged that Mallinckrodt had failed to properly report suspicious orders of painkillers that eventually made their way to the black market in Florida. The government contended that Mallinckrodt’s actions...

Tagged in: Pharma Fraud,

Major Insulin Makers Accused of Price Fixing

Posted 01/31/17

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team As reported in the New York Times, a group of diabetes patients filed suit yesterday against the three dominant providers of insulin, alleging they systematically raised prices through a price-fixing scheme that imposed on patients “crushing out-of-pocket expenses.” The lawsuit -- brought against Sanofi, Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly -- comes only a few months after Senator...

Tagged in: Medicare, Pharma Fraud,

Japanese Drug Manufacturer Nippon Forms Human Chain to Evade FDA Inspection

Posted 10/21/16

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team Talk about acting guilty. Japanese drug manufacturer Nippon Fine Chemical was so concerned about US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) violations that the quality control manager literally created a “shoulder-to-shoulder” wall of people in an attempt to prevent an FDA inspector from entering portions of the lab used to analyze drugs for US distribution. The attempted...

Tagged in: CGMP Violation,

DOJ Catch of the Week -- Genentech

Posted 06/10/16

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team This week's Department of Justice "Catch of the Week" goes to Genentech Inc. and OSI Pharmaceuticals LLC. On Monday, the San Francisco and New York-based pharmaceutical companies agreed to pay $67 million to resolve charges they violated the False Claims Act by making misleading statements about the effectiveness of the drug Tarceva, which is approved to treat certain patients...

Tagged in: Catch of the Week, Defective Products, FCA Federal, Whistleblower Case, Whistleblower Rewards,

Tarceva Whistleblower Settlement Shows Government Willingness to Scrutinize Efficacy Data Even for On-Label Uses

Posted 06/8/16

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team On June 6, 2016, the Department of Justice announced that Genentech Inc. and OSI Pharmaceuticals would pay $67 million to resolve whistleblower allegations that the companies misled physicians and patients about the effectiveness of Tarceva to treat certain types of lung cancer. The whistleblower’s complaint alleged that the companies deployed sales forces and physician...

Tagged in: Defective Products, FCA Federal, Off-Label and Unapproved Use, Whistleblower Case,

DOJ Catch Of The Week -- Nashville Pharmacy Services

Posted 01/8/16

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team This week's Department of Justice "Catch of the Week" goes to Nashville Pharmacy Services, LLC, and its majority owner Kevin Hartman. On Tuesday, Mr. Hartman and his Nashville-based pharmacy that specializes in dispensing HIV and AIDS-related medications agreed to pay up to $7.8 million to settle charges they overbilled Medicare and TennCare for pharmacy services. Click here...

Tagged in: Catch of the Week, Drug and DME Pricing, FCA Federal, FCA State, Medical Billing Fraud, Pharma Fraud, Whistleblower Case, Whistleblower Rewards,

DOJ Catch of the Week -- Qualitest

Posted 12/18/15

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team This week's Department of Justice "Catch of the Week" goes to Qualitest Pharmaceuticals. On Wednesday, the company's corporate shell, Vintage Pharmaceuticals, its parent Endo Pharmaceuticals, and seven of their affiliates agreed to pay $39 million to settle charges they violated the False Claims Act by selling understrength chewable fluoride tablets. See DOJ Press...

Tagged in: Catch of the Week, Defective Products,

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Eighth Circuit Rules That Public Disclosure Bar Applies in Drug Price Inflation Suit

Fraudster of the Week -- Monarch Medical Group

Walgreens Settles Whistleblower Suit over Alleged Medi-Cal Fraud

The Government’s Struggle to Hold Opioid Manufacturers Accountable

Major Insulin Makers Accused of Price Fixing

Japanese Drug Manufacturer Nippon Forms Human Chain to Evade FDA Inspection

DOJ Catch of the Week -- Genentech

Tarceva Whistleblower Settlement Shows Government Willingness to Scrutinize Efficacy Data Even for On-Label Uses

DOJ Catch Of The Week -- Nashville Pharmacy Services

DOJ Catch of the Week -- Qualitest

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