FCA Federal

November 13, 2018

Two foreign airlines, British Airways and Iberia Airlines, have agreed to pay $5.8 million to resolve allegations brought under the False Claims Act that they falsely reported timestamps for deliveries made abroad. As part of their contracts with the United States Postal Service (USPS) to deliver U.S. mail to recipients at foreign posts, such as military bases, the airlines were required to submit accurate delivery information in order to obtain payment, but were found to have falsified that information instead. DOJ

November 12, 2018

Following a whistleblower complaint, North Carolina-based Shaw University, and local building contractor, Freddy Novelo, have agreed to pay $316,900 to resolve allegations of violating the False Claims Act in bids for Department of Education construction contracts. To evade the department's competitive bidding requirements, the defendants had allegedly submitted false bids, then used the false bids to support their payment claims. USAO EDNC

November 6, 2018

An Indiana-based dental care practice and admin support company have agreed to pay a total of $5.139 million to settle allegations they violated the federal and Indiana state False Claims Acts. According to whistleblower and qui tam plaintiff Dr. Jihaad Abdul-Majid, between 2009 and 2013, ImmediaDent of Indiana, LLC and Samson Dental Partners, LLC allegedly billed Indiana's Medicaid program for procedures that were either upcoded (i.e. represented to be more serious and more expensive than they actually were), were not actually performed, or were not medically necessary. Samson Dental Partners is additionally accused of violating Indiana’s law prohibiting the corporate practice of dentistry. Because the companies refused oversight proposed during settlement, they have now been classified as "high risk" to federal healthcare programs. IN AG; USAO WDKY

November 2, 2018

Metropolitan Retina Associates, Inc. and its owner, Dr. Kenneth S. Felder, have settled a False Claims Act investigation by agreeing to pay $2,064,559 for Medicare and Medicaid fraud. As part of the settlement, the New York-based ophthalmology practice admitted and accepted responsibility for submitting claims involving medically unnecessary and improperly documented fluorescein angiograms, as well as ultrasounds of the eye. USAO SDNY

November 2, 2018

Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation (NGSC), a subsidiary of Northrop Grumman Corporation, has agreed to pay a total of $31.65 million to settle False Claims Act-based civil and criminal allegations concerning fraudulent billing of the U.S. Air Force. NGSC allegedly overbilled for time that its Middle East-based employees spent working on the Battlefield Airborne Communications Node (BACN) and Dynamic Re-tasking Capability (DRC) contracts. According to NGSC timesheets, employees were putting in exactly 12-13.5 hours a day, seven days a week, for multiple years. At one location alone, the overbilling resulted in a loss of more than $5 million. DOJ; USAO SDCA

October 26, 2018

Abbott Laboratories and AbbVie, Inc. have agreed to pay $25 million to settle a case initiated by a whistleblower alleging that the pharma companies paid unlawful kickbacks and engaged in unlawful off-label marketing for the drug TriCor.  The kickbacks took the form of gifts and payments for consulting and speaking engagements that were meant to induce or reward physicians for prescribing TriCor.  The off-label marketing consisted of Abbott's advertising the drug for conditions for which it was not FDA-approved.  The whistleblower, Amy Bergman, a former Abbott sales representative, will receive $6.5 million of the settlement.  USAO E.D.Pa.

October 25, 2018

Passavant Memorial Homes and its pharmacy subsidiaries have agreed to pay $1,850,000 to resolve allegations that it billed federal healthcare programs, including Medicare and Medicaid, for improperly prescribed controlled substances, in violation of the False Claims Act and Controlled Substances Act. While the controlled substances were prescribed for a legitimate medical purpose, they were not deemed valid with only a doctor's order by Medicare and Medicaid rules. The company later self-disclosed to the government and has since changed its policy to comply with these rules. USAO EDPA; USAO WDPA

October 24, 2018

The owners and operators of two community mental health clinics in Pennsylvania and North Carolina have entered into a $3 million consent judgment with the United States to resolve allegations of violating the False Claims Act. In 2000, Melchor Martinez was convicted of Medicaid fraud by the State of Pennsylvania and subsequently banned from owning and operating health clinics or seeking reimbursement from all federally funded healthcare programs. Despite this, he allegedly continued to own and operate three chains of mental health clinics—including Northeast Community Health Centers, Lehigh Valley Community Mental Health Centers, and Carolina Community Mental Health Centers—by enlisting the help of his wife, Melissa Chlebowski, to act as the true owner and operator. In addition, the two allegedly failed to operate according to rules set by Medicare and Medicaid, including seeing patients for only 2-3 minutes and billing for 15, and billing for services provided by unqualified staff. They were eventually outed in a qui tam lawsuit filed by a former employee. USAO EDPA