On April 6, 2015, the Sixth Circuit delivered a costly blow to the United States government to the tune of $657 million when it issued its opinion in United States v. United Technologies Corporation and remanded the case back to the district court to review the damages award, yet again.

This was the second time that the Sixth Circuit heard arguments deriving from the United States False Claims Act case against Pratt & Whitney (“Pratt”), now owned by United Technologies, for false statements the company made when competing against GE Aircraft for contracts to build F-15 and F-16 jet engines. In 1983, in an attempt to outbid GE Aircraft and make it hard for the government to issue a split-award contract, Pratt misstated its projected costs and certified that the company’s bid included its “best estimates and/or actual costs.” After uncovering Pratt’s overstated costs projections, the government filed both an administrative action against the company in the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (“ASBCA”) under the Truth in Negotiations Act and a lawsuit in district court alleging violations of the False Claims Act.

Continue Reading United Technologies is Saved from $657 million False Claims Act Verdict by the Sixth Circuit

In recent months, relators’ qui tam complaints have been subject to increased scrutiny by criminal prosecutors. In addition to civil FCA liability, individuals doing business with the federal government face potential criminal liability under various criminal fraud-related statutes. Potential charges for fraudulent activities are not limited to a criminal fraud charge, but also include bribery, false statements, conspiracy to defraud, wire fraud, mail fraud, and identity theft, among others. Most of these crimes are felonies and carry substantial penalties, including fines, freezing of assets and imprisonment. Especially in the healthcare industry and defense procurement space, many criminal investigations originate as civil qui tam filings only later adopting a criminal component. These parallel investigations typically involve the DOJ and may include other enforcement agencies.

Recent DOJ rhetoric encourages an increased use of such parallel investigations. In September 2014, Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division of the DOJ, Leslie Caldwell, announced that the Criminal Division would be “stepping up” its review to look for potential criminal liability in qui tam complaints, noting that such complaints “are a vital part of the Criminal Divisions’ future efforts.”[1] Consistent with this message, Caldwell encouraged the relator’s bar to notify the Criminal Division directly when a complaint is filed instead of coordinating only with the local U.S. Attorney’s Office. As part of the new process, the Criminal Division will receive and review new complaints so that prosecutors may determine the nature and extent of any criminal exposure.

Continue Reading New DOJ Qui Tam Protocols Likely to Lead to Increased Parallel Criminal Investigations

On March 31, 2015, in United States v. Robinson, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky issued the latest opinion approving the use of statistical sampling by the government and relators to establish FCA liability.  In Robinson, the government has asserted that an optometrist provided medically unnecessary optometric services to nursing home residents over a five-year period and subsequently billed Medicare for these services.  As support for its medical necessity argument, the government submitted an expert witness opinion based on an examination of a sample of 30 of the 25,779 claims at issue.

In moving for summary judgment, the defendant argued in part that the government should not be permitted to utilize statistical sampling to extrapolate FCA liability and damages to the 25,779 claims at issue.  The government contended that requiring a claim-by-claim review in FCA cases involving this magnitude of claims would enable many defendants to evade prosecution and that other courts have found statistical sampling appropriate in establishing FCA liability in similar cases.

Continue Reading Trend of Using Statistical Sampling to Support FCA Liability Continues

On March 31, 2015, DOJ announced a $10 million settlement with Robinson Health System Inc. (Robinson), a nonprofit operator of 10 Northeast Ohio healthcare facilities, including Robinson Memorial Hospital.

The settlement, announced a day before Robinson finalized a transaction involving its flagship hospital, stems from a June 2014 self-disclosure to the U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, in which Robinson disclosed questionable financial relationships under Stark and the AKS, some dating back nearly 10 years, with more than 30 referring physicians. This self-disclosure stemmed from a due diligence review conducted while searching for a partner health system.

Continue Reading Ohio Health System’s Self-Disclosure Leads to $10 Million FCA Settlement

Bass, Berry & Sims is pleased to provide its annual Healthcare Fraud and Abuse Review, which highlights significant enforcement trends and legal developments, discusses recent cases and settlements affecting the healthcare industry, and provides an outlook on what lies ahead in 2015.

During the previous year, Bass, Berry & Sims attorneys have represented virtually every type of provider in the healthcare industry in civil and criminal healthcare fraud investigations and related litigation. We have incorporated this experience into our Healthcare Fraud and Abuse Review for the benefit of our clients and friends and hope that the Review will be a valuable resource for healthcare providers facing complex compliance and fraud and abuse-related issues.

The Healthcare Fraud and Abuse Review offers a concise discussion and analysis of such topics as:

  • False Claims Act Update
  • Noteworthy Healthcare Settlements
  • Pharmaceutical and Device Developments
  • Medicare Contractors and Related Litigation
  • Stark/Anti-Kickback Statute Developments

If you have any questions about the Healthcare Fraud and Abuse Review or other healthcare fraud and abuse issues, please contact one of the authors.

A Maryland-based construction company required to pay “prevailing wages” under a Federal government contract recently settled for $400,000 claims that it had violated the False Claims Act (“FCA”) by failing to properly supervise lower-level contractors in the payment of prevailing wages to their workers. The case serves as a reminder that government contractors who fail to ensure compliance with wage requirements – whether under the Davis-Bacon Act (“DBA”), Service Contract Act (“SCA”), or Walsh-Healy Public Contracts Act (“PCA”) – can face significant liability. It also highlights the ongoing expansion of the federal government’s battle against procurement fraud. Read the full analysis on the GovCon & Trade blog post “The Growing Risks of Non-Compliance with Wage Rate Determinations.”

We recently authored an article examining the rise in states developing their own false claims act statutes and how this expansion is impacting government contractors. The article offers tips to government contractors on ways to mitigate the risk of state false claims actions.

The full article, “The Expanding Risk Of State FCA Actions,” was published by Law360 on March 6.

On February 25, 2015, the Sixth Circuit reversed a district court’s decision to dismiss FCA allegations pursuant to the FCA’s public disclosure bar because the “publicity” aspect of the public disclosure bar was not satisfied.   The Sixth Circuit’s opinion became the most recent appellate decision to require disclosure beyond the government or the government’s agents or contractors to implicate the public disclosure bar.

In U.S. ex rel. Whipple v. Chattanooga-Hamilton County Hosp. Authority, OIG instituted an audit of the defendant’s billing practices in response to an anonymous complaint.  That audit led to a subsequent investigation by OIG, during which it consulted with the DOJ.  In 2009, the defendant resolved the matter through a refund to the government, and the government declined to pursue the matter further.

Continue Reading Sixth Circuit Addresses the “Public” Aspect of the Public Disclosure Bar

We recently authored an article on False Claims Act (FCA) enforcement actions brought against pharmaceutical and medical device manufacturers during the past year. In the article, we analyzed the recent settlements for Ansun Biopharma, Inc. (formerly known as NexBio, Inc.); Smith & Nephew, Inc.; McKesson Corporation; and Stryker Corporation and Alliant Enterprises.

The article, “Lessons Learned From FCA Settlements With Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Manufacturers,” was published in BNA Medical Devices Law & Industry Report on February 18.

Following the federal government’s example, states are increasingly looking to their own false claims act (FCA) statutes to combat procurement and healthcare fraud. This trend is being driven by two main factors: (1) the huge recoveries by the Department of Justice (DOJ) under the federal FCA – $5.7 billion in Fiscal Year 2014 alone; and (2) a federal statute that provided a financial incentive for states to mirror their own FCAs on the federal FCA with regard to healthcare fraud. This state-level activity represents a new front in the battle against procurement fraud, one that government contractors must be aware of to fully analyze and mitigate risks when contracting with state entities. Currently, 33 states and the District of Columbia have a false claims statute. Of these, 11 states have FCAs that are limited to healthcare fraud; the remaining statutes penalize a broad range of false claims. Many – but not all – of these state FCAs have provisions allowing for whistleblowers to file qui tam actions on behalf of the state government and to share in any recovery.

Read the full analysis on the GovCon blog post “A New Front in the Battle Against Fraud – the Continued Expansion of State False Claims Act Liability.”

From the Bass, Berry & Sims Blog Network
From the Bass, Berry & Sims Blog Network

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