False Claims Act/Qui Tam

This blog is about qui tam, a  lawsuit brought under the False Claims Act by a private plaintiff on behalf of the Federal or State Government (rather than by the Government itself). The False Claims Act was originally enacted by Congress in 1863, as a response to widespread abuses by government contractors against the Union Army during the Civil War. The qui tam provisions are now used widely and this blog is intended to keep readers up to date with all qui tam related news and to provide commentary when warranted.  This blog also contains an array of laws and regulations concerning qui tam set out in an easy to read format.

Posts tagged as:

kickbacks

Whistleblower Exposes What Could be Massive Medi-Cal Fraud Scheme

by Nolan and Auerbach on March 21, 2009

The State of California has joined a qui tam action against seven private laboratories to recover hundreds of millions of dollars in false claims submitted to the state’s Medi-Cal program for the poor, according to a March 20 press release by the California Office of Attorney General.

The lawsuit contends that the medical labs systematically overcharged the Medi-Cal program during the past 15 years. The defendants, including Quest Diagnostics and Laboratory Corporation of America, allegedly engaged in illegal kickbacks and overcharging the state by up to 400% for blood, urine and other lab tests. It is estimated that damages could amount to hundreds of millions of dollars.

Filed under California’s False Claims Act, the qui tam lawsuit asks for relief in the amount of triple the amount of California’s damages, civil penalties of $10,000 for each false claim; and recovery of costs, attorneys’ fees and expenses.

This is one of the largest, if not the largest, single state qui tam intervention against multiple laboratories, in history.

To read the full press release, go to: http://ag.ca.gov/newsalerts/release.php?id=1705&. For more about qui tam law and Healthcare Fraud, contact Nolan and Auerbach, PA.

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Stark Violations Land Hospital in Hot Water

by Nolan and Auerbach on May 10, 2006

A May 9, 2006, Los Angeles Times article (Lisa Girion, U.S. Programs May Exclude Tenet Hospital, The Los Angeles Times, May 9, 2006 at C9), it was reported that, “… the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General notified Dallas-based Tenet that it intended to exclude Alvarado Hospital Medical Center in San Diego from the Medicare program, the Medicaid plan for the poor and all other federal health programs. The decision is based on allegations that Alvarado paid kickbacks over 10 years in order to induce doctors to refer patients for services and items paid for by the federal programs. ” This action follows two mistrials in which jurors were unable to agree as to whether Tenet, Alvarado Hospital Medical Center and a former employee were guilty of related criminal charges. To read more, see The LA Times.

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