False Claims Act - Whistleblowers Blog» False Claims Act – Whistleblowers Blog

St. Jude Medical is in Talk to Settle False Claim Case

mam@pietragallo.com — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 20:30:44 +0000

In 2006, Charles Donigan sued his former employer, St. Jude Medical, under the Federal False Claims Act for allegedly paying kickbacks to physicians and other health care providers to induce them to use St. Jude medical devices, including pacemakers. Four years later, after the government indicated its intent to intervene in the lawsuit, St. Jude is discussing settlement with the government. The allegations center around payments made to physicians for data collection and studies of St. Jude products, which included entertainment, travel and passes to sporting events. It is not clear how much money St. Jude might pay to settle. But, the case is part of a broader investigation of medical device kickbacks in which Boston Scientific recently settled claims for $22 million.

For more information see: http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100826-711507.html

Hewlett Packard Settles Claims of defrauding the US General Services Administration

mam@pietragallo.com — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:21:56 +0000

Hewlett – Packard settled claims that it knowingly paid kickbacks to systems integrator companies in return for recommendations that federal agencies purchase H-P products. The government also claimed that H-P defectively priced a 2002 contract with the General services Administration by failing to disclose complete information during the negotiating process. Under the terms of the settlement, H-P will pay the government $55 million.

For more information see: http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2010/08/30/hp-pays-55-mil-but-gets-up-to-800-mil-from-feds/

Allergan settles Botox Claims for $600 million

mam@pietragallo.com — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 15:20:09 +0000

Allergan settled claims of off-label marketing of its Botox pharmaceutical and other claims for a total of $600 million. The government accused Allergan of recommending Botox for unapproved uses including headache, pain, spasticity and juvenile cerebral palsy. As part of the settlement, Allergan also pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charge of misbranding, or inadequate labeling of products for intended uses. Allergan is also required under the settlement to hire and pay for a third-party to monitor is compliance efforts for the next five years.

For more information see: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703882304575465371767239834.html?mod=googlenews_wsj

South Florida Health Care Providers Plead Guilty in Medicare Fraud Scheme

mam@pietragallo.com — Fri, 03 Sep 2010 13:41:25 +0000

A physician, clinic owner and a number of clinic nurses pleaded guilty to participating in a large Medicare fraud conspiracy. Dr. Fred Dweck, Yudel Cayro and others referred numerous Medicare recipients for unnecessary home health care services and charged those services to Medicare. In total, Medicare paid more than $32 million of the $53 million fraudulent claims billed. The clinic owner admitted to receiving kickback from individuals who recruited Medicare recipients, and from owners of Miami home health agencies. Several nurses also pleaded guilty for falsifying patients files of Medicare beneficiaries to make it appear that they qualified for home health care and therapy services. Each of the defendants faces up to 10 years in prison for each conspiracy county to commit health care fraud.

For more information see: http://www.bizjournals.com/southflorida/stories/2010/08/30/daily16.html

Hospital to the Stars to repay Government $5.25 million

mam@pietragallo.com — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 21:04:31 +0000

St. John’s Medical Center of Santa Monica, California has agreed to repay the federal government $5.25 million to settle claims that it overbilled Medicare. The government alleged that St. John’s “turbocharged” its claims to Medicare by raising charges more quickly than its actual costs rose. According to the government, the practice allowed St. John’s to obtain significantly greater outlier payments, which are payments designed to reimburse hospitals for extraordinarily costly care to patients, that it was not entitled to receive. The payment covers claims made between 1996 and 2009.

For more information see: http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/story/medicare-fraud-saint-johns-health-center-pay-5-25m-overbilling/2010-08-26

Massachusetts settles with medical device company for “off label” marketing

mam@pietragallo.com — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:53:00 +0000

The Massachusetts Attorney General settled claims of off label marketing with medical device maker, Stryker Biotech. The state claimed that Stryker violated state consumer protection laws by falsifying documents from Massachusetts hospitals’ Institutional Review Boards in order to obtain get approval for the use of its bone growth products. Thus, Stryker was alleged to have marketed products that the government had yet to approve. “Off label” marketing describes the illegal practice of marketing a product for a use that was not approved. Such “off-label” marketing is misleading to health care providers about the appropriate use of approved products. Stryker Biotech agreed to pay the state $1.35 million to settle the claims.

For more information see: http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/stories/2010/08/23/daily27.html?ana=e_du_pub

Furuno USA settles qui tam claims over its navigation equipment

mam@pietragallo.com — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 20:50:43 +0000

Furuno USA, settled a qui tam lawsuit against it for supplying electronic equipment to the US Coast Guard and Navy that was manufactured in China in violation of the Federal Trade Agreements Act. The government claimed that Furuno continued to provide Chinese navigation equipment even after it was advised that the equipment could not be manufactured in China. In addition to the nearly $700,000 settlement, Furuno agreed to pay $95,000 in attorney fees to the relator. The relator’s share of the settlement is approximately $159, 864.

For more information se: http://wireupdate.com/wires/9085/us-reach-695000-settlement-with-furuno-usa-in-dispute-over-navigation-equipment/

Johnson & Johnson Unit Issued FDA Warning Letter

mam@pietragallo.com — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 14:21:19 +0000

On August 19, 2010, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning letter to DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc., a business unit of Johnson & Johnson, stating that it is marketing two products without required clearance or approvals in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The warning letter was specifically directed at two (2) DePuy Orthopaedics’ products, the TruMatch Personalized Solutions System and the Corail Hip System. The FDA claimed that the TruMatch system did not receive pre-market approval and was misbranded because of the lack of notification to the FDA. Likewise, the Corail Hip System received FDA pre-market notification but was marketed for uses beyond that specific notification. DePuy is required to respond within fifteen (15) days to the FDA’s letter and explain its plan to prevent these violations from occurring in the future and document any corrective action taken.

For more information see: http://www.fda.gov/ICECI/EnforcementActions/WarningLetters/ucm223613.htm

Medicare and Medicaid Contractor Settles Claim for $137.5 Million

mam@pietragallo.com — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 15:27:30 +0000

On August 20, 2010, it was announced that a Medicare and Medicaid managed-care company, WellCare Health Plans, Inc., reached a preliminary settlement to pay $137.5 million to settle a False Claims Act case which has been pending for the past four years. The allegations arise from claims that WellCare was responsible for schemes to avoid repaying overpayments which it received from Florida and New York’s Medicaid programs, inflate reinsurance payments, and disenroll Medicaid beneficiaries whom the company considered unprofitable. The False Claims Act complaint also alleged that the company stole $400 million to $600 million from Medicare and Medicaid programs in several states.

This lawsuit was initiated by a former WellCare senior analyst, Sean Hellein, who worked with the Justice Department and wore a hidden wire as part of the undercover investigation into the alleged criminal misconduct by WellCare. The False Claims Act allows the individual who initiates the lawsuit to share in a portion of the recovery obtained in any lawsuit or settlement.

For more information see: http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2010/08/16/bisg0820.htm

or http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20100810-713391.html

Energy Companies to Pay $6.9 Million to Resolve False Claims Act Allegations

mam@pietragallo.com — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 15:23:51 +0000

On August 20, 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that two oil companies, Dominion Oklahoma Texas Exploration & Production, Inc. and Marathon Oil Company, will pay the United States $2,219,974.98 and $4,697,476.57, respectively, in an effort to resolve claims that the companies each violated the False Claims Act. These allegations stem from complaints that both energy corporations knowingly underpaid royalties owed on natural gas leases from federal and Indian land. More specifically, the complaint claimed that Dominion and Marathon improperly deducted from the royalties the values of the cost of boosting gas up to pipeline pressures and that Dominion improperly reported processed gas as unprocessed gas to reduce royalty payments.

The Dominion and Marathon settlements arise from the lawsuit filed by Harold Wright under the False Claims Act, which allows private citizens to file suits on behalf of the United States and share in any recovery. Mr. Wright is now deceased and, as a result, his heirs will receive $1.822 million from these settlements. Other settlements to date in this case include agreements with Burlington Resources for $105.3 million, Shell for $56 million, Chevron, Texaco, and Unocal for $45.5 million, and Mobil for $32.2 million.

For more information see: http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2010/August/10-civ-942.html