Whistleblower Group
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October 24, 2014
HealthyLife Sciences, LLC and its former CEO settle charges that they deceived consumers with promises that their Healthe Trim supplements would burn fat, increase metabolism, and suppress appetite and made false and unsubstantiated claims that Healthe Trim supplements would cause rapid and substantial weight loss. Advertisements for Healthe Trim, which used the tagline “Get High School Skinny,” relied heavily on consumer testimonials that portrayed losing weight as easy. The settlement bans the former CEO from the weight-loss industry and HealthyLife Sciences is banned from making any of the seven weight-loss claims that the FTC has publicly advised are scientifically infeasible, with respect to any supplement, over-the-counter drug, or any product rubbed into or worn on the skin. FTCOctober 24, 2014
Constantine Cannon whistleblower lawyer Gordon Schnell quoted in Modern Healthcare on the $400 million payment by DaVita Healthcare Partners to settle whistleblower charges it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to physicians to induce patient referrals to DaVita's dialysis clinics.October 24, 2014
HealthyLife Sciences, LLC and its former CEO settle charges that they deceived consumers with promises that their Healthe Trim supplements would burn fat, increase metabolism, and suppress appetite and made false and unsubstantiated claims that Healthe Trim supplements would cause rapid and substantial weight loss. Advertisements for Healthe Trim, which used the tagline “Get High School Skinny,” relied heavily on consumer testimonials that portrayed losing weight as easy. The settlement bans the former CEO from the weight-loss industry and HealthyLife Sciences is banned from making any of the seven weight-loss claims that the FTC has publicly advised are scientifically infeasible, with respect to any supplement, over-the-counter drug, or any product rubbed into or worn on the skin. FTCWhistleblower News from the Inside - October 24, 2014
Posted 10/24/14
By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team
Northrop must face whistleblower suit -- A judge rejected Northrop Grumman's bid to dismiss a lawsuit by a former employee who accused the defense contractor of defrauding the U.S. government in performing a contract to develop a missile defense system for commercial aircraft. Reuters
Vanguard lashes out at lawyer-turned-whistleblower -- Vanguard Group has responded to a...
October 24, 2014
A federal court has ordered California resident Ryan A. Nassbridges, and his companies, American Bullion Exchange ABEX Corp. and American Bullion Exchange, LLC, to pay over $18 million in penalties in a commodity pool precious metals scheme. CFTCOctober 24, 2014
The CFTC has obtained a federal court order of default judgment against defendant Financial Robotics, Inc., a Texas corporation, for its participation in a fraudulent Forex scheme, requiring the defendant to pay restitution of $827,000 and a penalty of almost $2.5 million. CFTCDOJ Catch of the Week -- DaVita
Posted 10/24/14
By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team
This week's Department of Justice "catch of the week" goes to DaVita Healthcare Partners, Inc., one of the leading providers of dialysis services in the United States. On Wednesday, the Denver-based company agreed to pay $400 million to resolve claims it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks for patient referrals to its dialysis clinics. It apparently is the...
October 23, 2014
A court shut down Centro Natural Corp. and Sumore L.L.C., at the FTC’s request, on allegations that they operate a phantom debt collection operation that deceived and abused thousands of Spanish-speaking consumers across the country in an attempt to collect money they did not even owe. According to the FTC, the companies bilked consumers out of at least two million dollars by cold-calling consumers and threatening them with harsh consequences, such as arrest, legal actions, and immigration status investigations, if they failed to make large payments on bogus debts. The defendants’ telemarketers also pressured and deceived consumers into paying for unwanted products by telling consumers it would “settle” their debt. The FTC is seeking a court order permanently stopping the defendants’ scam. FTCReport on UNC Scandal Finds 18 Years of Academic Fraud
Posted 10/23/14
By Marlene Koury
UNC just released a report on the academic scandal that has plagued its African and Afro-American Studies department since former UNC learning specialist Mary Willingham blew the whistle on the department's sham classes. The report found that, during an 18 year period, more than 3,100 students enrolled in the department's "paper classes" and nearly half of those students were student athletes, many...