Archive

Eighth Circuit Takes Broad View of Whistleblower “Finder's Fee”

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team Under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, a whistleblower who files an action that ultimately leads to a government recovery is entitled to a generous portion of the proceeds -- anywhere from 15 to 30 percent.  There is no discretion in making an award.  It is mandated by statute.  It is this unadulterated promise of a significant financial bounty that has been a...

Pharmaceutical Case Presents Novel Use of False Claims Act

(As reported in Thomson Reuters) When you think of a whistleblower, you might think of an employee reporting on the misconduct of some giant corporate employer -- a David versus Goliath scenario.  On Friday, Reuters reminded us that this is not always the case, reporting on a False Claims Act lawsuit brought by a very different kind of whistleblower -- a corporate competitor.  In this case, Amphastar...

Lance Armstrong’s Legal Woes Mount as Justice Department Considers Joining Fraud Case

By Jason Enzler A False Claims Act complaint filed against Lance Armstrong by former teammate Floyd Landis has leaked, despite the fact that it was filed under seal and the Department of Justice has not publically decided whether it will intervene.  Although the DOJ was expected to make that decision last Thursday, there have been widespread reports that the decision would be postponed because DOJ officials are...

More Trouble for Orthofix

By Marlene Koury Medical device maker Orthofix, Inc. this week obtained court approval for its June 2012 settlement proposal to resolve civil and criminal allegations that it defrauded Medicare through kickback schemes and overbilling for its bone-growth stimulators.  Click here for the original government press release.  The company will pay approximately $43 million for its misdeeds.  This payment follows on...

CVS Sub Caught Duping Consumers in Prescription Drug Purchases

By Marlene Koury In one of the first False Claims Act settlements involving Medicare's "Part D" prescription drug program, CVS Caremark subsidiary, RxAmerica, agreed to pony up $5.25 million to resolve charges that it submitted false pricing information to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).  This is the government body that oversees the Medicare and Medicaid programs.  It also makes available the...