ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Nursing home network Hebrew Homes agreed to pay $17 million to settle a False Claims Act suit brought by their former CFO. According to the CFO, Hebrew Homes allegedly violated the Anti-Kickback Statute, which prohibits the exchange (or offer to exchange), of anything of value, in an effort […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER In her book, Confessions of an RX Drug Pusher, former pharmaceutical sales representative Gwen Olsen is exposing Big Pharma. Olsen says that there is no such thing as a safe drug, and that she and other sales representatives were trained to misinform people, statements that are seemingly supported […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Supreme Court’s opinion in Kellogg, Brown & Root Services, Inc. v. United States ex. Rel. Carter has mixed implications for both relators and the defense side. The court’s ruling on the Wartime Suspension of Limitations Act (WSLA) and the “first to file” provision of the False Claims Act […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER The SEC Award program was created by the Dodd-Frank Act. This provides an incentive for people to give any information which would let the SEC take sanctions in an amount over $1 million. A whistleblower who finds himself in this case could earn 10% or 30 % of […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER DaVita HealthCare Partners, a Denver-based company, has agreed to pay up to $495 million to settle a whistleblower lawsuit accusing the company of defrauding the federal Medicare program. This is the third settlement of a whistleblower lawsuit by DaVita since 2012. Dr. Alon J. Vainer and nurse Daniel […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER The U.S. Senate recently approved the Motor Vehicle Safety Whistleblower Act, which provides whistleblower protections and bounties to individuals who report motor vehicle defects. The bill was unanimously approved. The act, aimed at improving safety in the auto industry, incentivizes employees and contractors of automakers, parts suppliers, and […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER The Department of Justice is investigating Medicare risk scores, as whistleblower lawsuits alleging billing abuses in privately run Medicare plans have recently increased. At least half a dozen of these lawsuits have been filed under the False Claims Act since 2010, including two that recently surfaced. Medicare Advantage […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER The Securities and Exchange Commission has announced a $600,000 reward for a whistleblower for the first time in a retaliation claim. The whistleblower, a former hedge-fund trader for Paradigm Capital Management, faced retaliation for reporting his concerns about conflicts of interest. The whistleblower received the maximum 30 percent […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER The Department of Justice announced new settlements under the False Claims Act, one of which affects Alameda, CA laboratory Singulex Inc, say Alameda County qui tam attorneys. Singulex, along with Health Diagnostics Laboratory of Richmond, VA, agreed to pay $48.5 million to settle charges that they violated the […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER The Securities and Exchange Commission has announced that it will pay an unidentified whistleblower, a compliance officer, an award of about $1.5 million. This is the second whistleblower award given to an employee with internal audit or compliance responsibilities, after $300,000 was awarded to a compliance officer in […]