Whistleblower Group
This archive page contains posts by the Whistleblower Practice Group. For all Whistleblower pages, please see:
Rose Cancer Center - Healthcare Fraud ($5.7 million)
Constantine Cannon represented a whistleblower in a False Claims Act case alleging Mississippi-based Rose Cancer Center used unqualified technicians performing bone marrow biopsies, diluted chemotherapy drugs, and falsified patient records to conceal the clinic’s fraudulent Medicare billings. The physician who owned and ran the practice plead guilty to various Medicare fraud violations, forfeited $5.7 million, and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. In August 2014, our client (along with three other whistleblowers) received a whistleblower award of $525,000 from the government's recovery. Read more -- Clarion Ledger, CC.DOJ Catch of the Week -- Reliance Medical Systems
Posted 09/12/14
By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team
This week's Department of Justice "catch of the week" goes to spinal implant company Reliance Medical Systems. On Monday, the government announced its filing of two False Claims Act lawsuits against the company, two of its distributorships -- Apex Medical Technologies and Kronos Spinal Technologies -- and Michigan neurosurgeon Dr. Aria Sabit. The complaints allege Apex and...
Whistleblower News from the Inside - September 12, 2014
Posted 09/12/14
By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team
Bipartisan support for strengthening whistleblower protections -- "To say it was heartwarming would be a stretch, but it was good to see the bipartisan support this week on behalf of federal whistleblowers from a congressional panel" with many seeming "pretty disgusted with the way Uncle Sam can treat federal employees who report waste, fraud and abuse." Washington...
September 12, 2014
Wall Street Journal, Legal Intelligencer, FiercePharma, FierceVaccines, and Law 360 report on Constantine Cannon's success in defeating a motion to dismiss its whistleblower lawsuit against Merck regarding Merck's mumps vaccine.D.C. Circuit Opines on What Constitutes Knowledge of Falsity Under the False Claims Act
Posted 09/11/14
By Jason Enzler
The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an opinion recently affirming a trial court’s grant of summary judgment against a qui tam relator. The ruling in U.S. ex rel. Folliard v. Government Acquisitions, Inc. dealt with two issues: whether the lower court properly denied discovery of certain information and whether the defendant had “knowingly” submitted false claims...
DOJ Launches New Elder Justice Website
Posted 09/11/14
By Marlene Koury
Nearly one in 10 people over the age of 60 suffer abuse and neglect, including physical, sexual and emotional abuse, consumer scams, health care fraud and various forms of financial exploitation. It is estimated that older adults in the United States lose more than $2.9 billion annually from financial exploitation alone. To protect older Americans, the DOJ's Elder Justice Initiative launched an...
The Beginning of the End for Ag-Gag Laws?
Posted 09/11/14
By Gordon Schnell
In an eagerly awaited decision out of federal court in Idaho last week, Chief Judge B. Lynn Winmill has dealt a mighty blow to proponents of the so-called "Ag-Gag" laws several states have passed in recent years to ensure what goes on in factory farms, stays in factory farms. At issue in this case is the constitutionality of the Idaho statute and whether -- in criminalizing undercover...
Whistleblower News from the Inside - September 9, 2014
Posted 09/9/14
By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team
DOJ sues for kickbacks and unnecessary spinal surgeries -- The DOJ files two False Claims Act complaints against Reliance Medical Systems for a kickback scheme in which physicians were paid to use Reliance spinal implants in the surgeries they performed, some of which were medically unnecessary. DOJ
DOJ investigating laboratories for possible kickback schemes -- The Wall Street...