Whistleblower Insider Blog

QOL Medical to Pay $47 Million to Settle DOJ and Whistleblower Kickback Claims

Last Friday (November 15), Florida-based pharmaceutical company QOL Medical and its CEO Frederick Cooper agreed to pay $47 million to resolve Department of Justice (DOJ) and whistleblower charges they violated the False Claims Act and Anti-Kickback Statute by providing patients free breath testing services to induce them to purchase QOL’s drug Sucraid. Sucraid treats Congenital Sucrase-Isomaltase Deficiency...

Paragon Systems to Pay $52 Million to Settle DOJ Charges of Fraudulently Securing Government Security Contracts Set Aside for Veteran- and Female-Owned Businesses

On November 12, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Virginia-based contractor Paragon Systems agreed to pay $52 million to settle DOJ and whistleblower charges of violating the False Claims Act by fraudulently securing government security contracts set aside for small businesses owned by women and veterans.  Paragon is one of the government’s largest providers of specialized security, fire and emergency...

DOJ Hits University of Colorado Health with $23 Million Penalty for Allegedly Upcoding Emergency Services

On November 12, University of Colorado Health (UCHealth) agreed to pay $23 million to settle Department of Justice (DOJ) and whistleblower charges of violating the False Claims Act by fraudulently billing Medicare and Tricare for certain emergency department services. According to the government, UCHealth used an automatic coding system where it billed certain emergency department services at the highest...

CFTC Makes $4 Million Whistleblower Award

On November 12, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced a $4 million award to two whistleblowers under the CFTC Whistleblower Program.  With this award, the agency has now issued roughly $390 million in whistleblower awards since its first award under the program in 2014.  These awards have been associated with more than $3.2 billion in monetary sanctions. The award follows a flurry of...

Former Kentucky Pharmacist Sentenced for Healthcare Fraud Scheme & How Whistleblowers Can Help Cases Like This

In a recent case out of Corbin, Kentucky, former pharmacist Stephanie Collins was sentenced to 20 months in prison after being found guilty of defrauding Medicare and Medicaid by billing for medications and medical supplies she never provided to her customers, violating the False Claims Act.

Operating as Stephanie’s Down Home Pharmacy, Collins falsely claimed reimbursements for drugs and diabetic test strips that...

Constantine Cannon Partner Gordon Schnell Published in Washington Technology on DOJ's Enforcement Crusade Against Cybersecurity Fraud

On Wednesday (October 28), government contracting magazine Washington Technology published a commentary by Constantine Cannon whistleblower partner Gordon Schnell on the recent string of False Claims Act enforcement actions DOJ has brought against government contractors for cybersecurity failures.

As Schnell points out, the most recent of these actions is last week's DOJ settlement with Penn State University for...

West Virginia Business Owner Sentenced for COVID Relief Fund Fraud

It appears there is a new name on the list of COVID relief fraudsters—Mark William Bailey, a business owner who evidently couldn’t resist misusing taxpayer-funded pandemic relief for personal luxuries, according to the DOJ this week. After misappropriating approximately $451,237.51 in COVID-19 relief funds guaranteed by the Small Business Administration (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic...

Michigan Pharmacy Owner Sentenced to Prison for $6.9 Million Medicare and Medicaid Fraud Scheme

Yesterday the U.S. Attorney's Office, Eastern District of Michigan announced that a licensed pharmacist from Dearborn Heights, Michigan, has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for her role in a $6.9 million scheme that defrauded Medicare, Medicaid, and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan by submitting false claims for medications that were never actually dispensed, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office...

Fourth Constantine Cannon Law School Scholarship Essay Contest On The Importance Of Whistleblowers

The Constantine Cannon Whistleblower Team is pleased to announce the launch of its Fourth Law School Scholarship Essay Contest on the Importance of Whistleblowers. This is an opportunity for law school students—the future leaders of the Bar—to share their thoughts on what it means to be a whistleblower and the critical role they play in serving the public good. We are especially interested in your own personal...

The DOJ Goes After Penn State For Cybersecurity Violations

Yesterday (October 22), the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that The Pennsylvania State University will pay $1.25 million to settle charges it violated the False Claims Act by failing to comply with the cybersecurity requirements under multiple Department of Defense (DoD) and NASA contracts. It is just the latest in a string of False Claims Act cases against universities and other federal contractors failing to...