CALL US TOLL FREE FOR HELP: 1-800-632-1404

We are attorneys that investigate False Claims Act cases nationwide, including in the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky and elsewhere for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, contractor fraud and more against a range of employers including healthcare providers, medical device companies, defense contractors, and pharmaceutical companies. We stand ready to provide a free case evaluation to you; please call us today.

False Claims Act Lawyer Discusses Construction Settlement

As attorneys representing individuals who want to blow the whistle against fraud against the United States Government and various state governments, I wanted to provide to you information about a construction company that has agreed to pay $1,150,000.00 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act.

Caddell Construction has agreed to pay more than One Million Dollars to settle allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by falsely reporting to the Army Corps of Engineers that it hired and mentored a Native American owned company to work on construction projects in both North Carolina and Kentucky.  The Army Corps contracted with Caddell between 2003 and 2005 to build barracks at two bases.  As part of the contract, Caddell represented that it would hire and mentor Mountain Chief Management Services, a Native-American owned company, under the Department of Defenses Mentor-Protégé and Indian Incentive Programs.  This program reimburses companies for the time and cost of mentoring small disadvantaged businesses while the Indian incentive program provides a rebate to contractors for subcontracting with Native-American owned businesses.

The United States allege that from April 2003 to March 2005, Caddell falsely represented in its invoices and supporting documents that it was mentoring Mountain Chief and Mountain Chief was performing work on the construction projects.  Instead, Mountain Chief was allegedly nothing more than a pass through entity used by Caddell to claim payments under the two programs.  Mountain Chief did not perform any work or receive the mentoring services for which Caddell received payment.  In other news, Caddell’s former director of business development, Mark Hill, and Mountain Chief’s former president, Daniel Chap, were indicted on related charges in the Federal District Court for the Middle District of Alabama in January 2012.  Both are currently awaiting trial.

If you have any information as to a company that is committing contracting fraud against the United States Government, we welcome the opportunity to discuss that with you.

If you have evidence to support claims of fraud against a business or entity, please contact us as soon as possible.

THE SCOPE OF FRAUD

Amazingly, some estimates have suggested that approximately 10% of the entire annual United States budget is lost to companies or individuals who are defrauding the government. The United States Federal budget for 2010 was $3.456 billion, meaning around $345.6 million was wrongfully wasted on fraud.

The entities defrauding the government do so in a variety of ways: Medicare or Medicaid fraud whereby they bill the government for services which they never provided or overbill for services that were provided; SEC Trading; Tax Fraud; TARP Fraud; Military/Defense contract fraud; Pharmaceutical Manufacturing;contract fraud involving any number of large government spending programs; or other types public benefit fraud.

HELPING THE PUBLIC.

As a whistleblower attorney, we are interested in speaking with persons willing to make known the truth about company practices and are willing to file a qui tam or whistleblower action. One area in particular we are interested in discussing are lawsuits involving medical device companies where the company is alleged to have overcharged, engaged in kickback programs, and the like. We will nevertheless investigate claims in a variety of areas.

Workers and persons all across the country witness actions at their work that may be unlawful or even corrupt. Unfortunately, some employees and workers feel that they will be fired, terminated, harrassed or punished if they report an unlawful or corrupt action. These reporters, however, are protected by the law as a Whistleblower and can receive compensation because of the False Claims Act or the Medicaid False Claims Act. If you have reported actions that may be fraudulent, then you should talk to a Whistleblower or qui tam lawyer about your facts.

Whistleblowers help the government to get back billions of dollars each year with the help of the False Claims Act. In fact, fraudulent Medicaid claims are also caught by whistleblowers having the Medicaid False Claims Act on their side. If you report a false claim or fraudulent action to the government, then the government will give you, the whistleblower, a part of the money that gets recovered. This is because of qui tam requirements. Qui Tam means that a person files a lawsuit for the king and also for him or herself. The phrase is qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur, or, “he who sues for the king as well for himself.”

These requirements and lawsuits were made popular during the Civil War when many people were getting away with fraudulent actions against the government. In 1986, the False Claims Act was amended to raise the total compensation given to people who reported fraudulent actions, or whistleblowers. If a whistleblower works with a lawyer then it may be possible for them to get three times the amount the government would get in damages and also get additional compensation for general fines.

TYPES OF CASES

The most common situations that could form the basis of a Qui Tam action include:

• Submitting a false or fraudulent record, bill or statement to the government in order to fraudulently obtain money such as reporting a medical service that was never performed for Medicare or Medicad;
• Conspiring with a third party to submit or present have a false or fraudulent claim to the government;
• Withholding property of the government with the intent to defraud or conceal the property from the government;
• Fraudulently buying property of the government from someone not authorized to sell that property; and
• Making a false statement to fraudulently avoid paying money to the government or to avoid delivering property to the government.

FOR HELP, PLEASE CONTACT US.

We help whistleblowers on a contingency basis, meaning there is no fee charged for our work unless there is a recovery. We also front any and all expenses. No matter where you are located — we will represent you. We will come to you, you will not have to come to us.

Attorneys in our firm and attorneys that we work with on Whistleblower, Qui Tam, False Claims Act cases have represented a host of persons making claims, for violations of federal tax law, Medicare law and more.

For more information, please contact our team of whitsleblower and qui tam attorneys today.

CALL 1-800-632-1404

or fill out this form below for a free initial consultation.

CALL US TOLL FREE FOR HELP: 1-800-632-1404

We are attorneys that investigate False Claims Act cases nationwide, including in the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky and elsewhere for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, contractor fraud and more against a range of employers including healthcare providers, medical device companies, defense contractors, and pharmaceutical companies. We stand ready to provide a free case evaluation to you; please call us today.

False Claims Act Lawyer Discusses Hospital Settlement

As attorneys that represent individuals that want to pursue claims of fraud on behalf of the United States Government, I found this particular case development interesting enough to post it on this website.

As a False Claims Act attorney, I wanted to advise the public that the previous owner of the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center has agreed to pay the Federal Government $4.9 million dollars for overbilling the Medicaid and Medicare system by keeping patients in the hospital longer than needed.  This is a potentially wide-stretching issue across the country in that numerous hospitals and facilities may very well be requiring patients to similarly stay longer than needed.

Capa Kel’s initiatives which recently sold to the University of Maryland Medical System denied any wrongdoing and said in a statement that it wanted to avoid lengthening costly court proceedings.  As a False Claims Act lawyer, I have seen similar stretches by business across the country.  This is especially true considering when the same hospital system faces hundreds of lawsuits from patients who accused Dr. Mark Midei, once a star cardiologist at St. Joseph of placing stents in the arteries of patients who may not have needed them. It also previously paid the government $22 million dollars to settle a separate allegation involving a cardiology practice where Midei once worked and to repay Medicare payments received for stents he implanted.

The unnecessary hospital stays were discovered by a routine audit conducted by St. Joseph, which then alerted federal officials.  The admissions, which occurred from 2007 to 2009, were not tied to any one doctor or department.  There may very well be additional hospitals in the United States, including in states such as Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, or Kentucky that are requiring patients to stay extended days in hospitals in order to maximize Medicare and/or Medicaid recoveries.  If you are aware of any such wrongdoing or suspicion of any other fraudulent activity, we invite you to contact us as soon as possible.

If you have evidence to support claims of fraud against a business or entity, please contact us as soon as possible.

THE SCOPE OF FRAUD

Amazingly, some estimates have suggested that approximately 10% of the entire annual United States budget is lost to companies or individuals who are defrauding the government. The United States Federal budget for 2010 was $3.456 billion, meaning around $345.6 million was wrongfully wasted on fraud.

The entities defrauding the government do so in a variety of ways: Medicare or Medicaid fraud whereby they bill the government for services which they never provided or overbill for services that were provided; SEC Trading; Tax Fraud; TARP Fraud; Military/Defense contract fraud; Pharmaceutical Manufacturing;contract fraud involving any number of large government spending programs; or other types public benefit fraud.

HELPING THE PUBLIC.

As a whistleblower attorney, we are interested in speaking with persons willing to make known the truth about company practices and are willing to file a qui tam or whistleblower action. One area in particular we are interested in discussing are lawsuits involving medical device companies where the company is alleged to have overcharged, engaged in kickback programs, and the like. We will nevertheless investigate claims in a variety of areas.

Workers and persons all across the country witness actions at their work that may be unlawful or even corrupt. Unfortunately, some employees and workers feel that they will be fired, terminated, harrassed or punished if they report an unlawful or corrupt action. These reporters, however, are protected by the law as a Whistleblower and can receive compensation because of the False Claims Act or the Medicaid False Claims Act. If you have reported actions that may be fraudulent, then you should talk to a Whistleblower or qui tam lawyer about your facts.

Whistleblowers help the government to get back billions of dollars each year with the help of the False Claims Act. In fact, fraudulent Medicaid claims are also caught by whistleblowers having the Medicaid False Claims Act on their side. If you report a false claim or fraudulent action to the government, then the government will give you, the whistleblower, a part of the money that gets recovered. This is because of qui tam requirements. Qui Tam means that a person files a lawsuit for the king and also for him or herself. The phrase is qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur, or, “he who sues for the king as well for himself.”

These requirements and lawsuits were made popular during the Civil War when many people were getting away with fraudulent actions against the government. In 1986, the False Claims Act was amended to raise the total compensation given to people who reported fraudulent actions, or whistleblowers. If a whistleblower works with a lawyer then it may be possible for them to get three times the amount the government would get in damages and also get additional compensation for general fines.

TYPES OF CASES

The most common situations that could form the basis of a Qui Tam action include:

• Submitting a false or fraudulent record, bill or statement to the government in order to fraudulently obtain money such as reporting a medical service that was never performed for Medicare or Medicad;
• Conspiring with a third party to submit or present have a false or fraudulent claim to the government;
• Withholding property of the government with the intent to defraud or conceal the property from the government;
• Fraudulently buying property of the government from someone not authorized to sell that property; and
• Making a false statement to fraudulently avoid paying money to the government or to avoid delivering property to the government.

FOR HELP, PLEASE CONTACT US.

We help whistleblowers on a contingency basis, meaning there is no fee charged for our work unless there is a recovery. We also front any and all expenses. No matter where you are located — we will represent you. We will come to you, you will not have to come to us.

Attorneys in our firm and attorneys that we work with on Whistleblower, Qui Tam, False Claims Act cases have represented a host of persons making claims, for violations of federal tax law, Medicare law and more.

For more information, please contact our team of whitsleblower and qui tam attorneys today.

CALL 1-800-632-1404

or fill out this form below for a free initial consultation.

CALL US TOLL FREE FOR HELP: 1-800-632-1404

We are attorneys that investigate False Claims Act cases nationwide, including in the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky and elsewhere for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, contractor fraud and more against a range of employers including healthcare providers, medical device companies, defense contractors, and pharmaceutical companies. We stand ready to provide a free case evaluation to you; please call us today.

False Claims Act Lawyer Discusses $12 Million Settlement

As attorneys that represent individuals that want to pursue claims of fraud on behalf of the United States Government, I found this particular case development interesting enough to post it on this website.

Hospice of Arizona L.C., along with a related entity, American Hospice Management, LLC and parent company American Hospice Management Holdings, LLC have agreed to pay $12 million dollars to resolve allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by submitting or causing the submission of false claims to the Medicare program for ineligible hospice services.  The government alleged that Hospice of Arizona and its related entities engaged in practices that resulted in the admission of ineligible patients or inflated bills, including pressuring staff to find more patients eligible for Medicare, adopting procedures that delayed and discouraged staff from discharging patients from hospice when they were no longer appropriate for such services, and not implementing an adequate compliance program that might have addressed these problems.  American Hospice Management Holdings has agreed to enter into a corporate integrity agreement with the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services that provides for procedures and reviews to be put in place to avoid this type of conduct in the future.

The allegations in the lawsuit that was filed were based upon a Relator named Ellen Momeyer, who filed suit under the qui tam or whistle blower provisions of the False Claims Act.  The whistle blower in the case will receive $1.8 million dollars for the action that was pending in the District of Maryland.

There are a number of companies that are currently taking advantage of the Medicare program and state Medicaid programs.  If you have any knowledge about a possible fraud against Medicare or Medicaid, we would encourage you to contact us as soon as possible so that we may confidentially investigate and provide a free case evaluation to you.

If you have evidence to support claims of fraud against a business or entity, please contact us as soon as possible.

THE SCOPE OF FRAUD

Amazingly, some estimates have suggested that approximately 10% of the entire annual United States budget is lost to companies or individuals who are defrauding the government. The United States Federal budget for 2010 was $3.456 billion, meaning around $345.6 million was wrongfully wasted on fraud.

The entities defrauding the government do so in a variety of ways: Medicare or Medicaid fraud whereby they bill the government for services which they never provided or overbill for services that were provided; SEC Trading; Tax Fraud; TARP Fraud; Military/Defense contract fraud; Pharmaceutical Manufacturing;contract fraud involving any number of large government spending programs; or other types public benefit fraud.

HELPING THE PUBLIC.

As a whistleblower attorney, we are interested in speaking with persons willing to make known the truth about company practices and are willing to file a qui tam or whistleblower action. One area in particular we are interested in discussing are lawsuits involving medical device companies where the company is alleged to have overcharged, engaged in kickback programs, and the like. We will nevertheless investigate claims in a variety of areas.

Workers and persons all across the country witness actions at their work that may be unlawful or even corrupt. Unfortunately, some employees and workers feel that they will be fired, terminated, harrassed or punished if they report an unlawful or corrupt action. These reporters, however, are protected by the law as a Whistleblower and can receive compensation because of the False Claims Act or the Medicaid False Claims Act. If you have reported actions that may be fraudulent, then you should talk to a Whistleblower or qui tam lawyer about your facts.

Whistleblowers help the government to get back billions of dollars each year with the help of the False Claims Act. In fact, fraudulent Medicaid claims are also caught by whistleblowers having the Medicaid False Claims Act on their side. If you report a false claim or fraudulent action to the government, then the government will give you, the whistleblower, a part of the money that gets recovered. This is because of qui tam requirements. Qui Tam means that a person files a lawsuit for the king and also for him or herself. The phrase is qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur, or, “he who sues for the king as well for himself.”

These requirements and lawsuits were made popular during the Civil War when many people were getting away with fraudulent actions against the government. In 1986, the False Claims Act was amended to raise the total compensation given to people who reported fraudulent actions, or whistleblowers. If a whistleblower works with a lawyer then it may be possible for them to get three times the amount the government would get in damages and also get additional compensation for general fines.

TYPES OF CASES

The most common situations that could form the basis of a Qui Tam action include:

• Submitting a false or fraudulent record, bill or statement to the government in order to fraudulently obtain money such as reporting a medical service that was never performed for Medicare or Medicad;
• Conspiring with a third party to submit or present have a false or fraudulent claim to the government;
• Withholding property of the government with the intent to defraud or conceal the property from the government;
• Fraudulently buying property of the government from someone not authorized to sell that property; and
• Making a false statement to fraudulently avoid paying money to the government or to avoid delivering property to the government.

FOR HELP, PLEASE CONTACT US.

We help whistleblowers on a contingency basis, meaning there is no fee charged for our work unless there is a recovery. We also front any and all expenses. No matter where you are located — we will represent you. We will come to you, you will not have to come to us.

Attorneys in our firm and attorneys that we work with on Whistleblower, Qui Tam, False Claims Act cases have represented a host of persons making claims, for violations of federal tax law, Medicare law and more.

For more information, please contact our team of whitsleblower and qui tam attorneys today.

CALL 1-800-632-1404

or fill out this form below for a free initial consultation.

CALL US TOLL FREE FOR HELP: 1-800-632-1404

We are attorneys that investigate False Claims Act cases nationwide, including in the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky and elsewhere for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, contractor fraud and more against a range of employers including healthcare providers, medical device companies, defense contractors, and pharmaceutical companies. We stand ready to provide a free case evaluation to you; please call us today.

False Claims Act Lawyer Discusses Tax Recovery

As attorneys that represent individuals that want to pursue claims of fraud on behalf of the United States Government, I found this particular case development interesting enough to post it on this website.

The New York Attorney General announced that there has been a settlement in a tax whistle blower case against a celebrity tailor, Mohanbahi Ramchandani, properly known as Mohan and his business Mohan’s Custom Tailors.  The case is the first settlement obtained under the 2010 tax whistle blower amendment to New York’s False Claims Act, and was brought by the Relator who blew the whistle on millions of dollars of unreported income and sales taxes by Mohan and his New York City based tailoring business, which widely advertises in newspapers and other media.  An attorney representing the Relator who brought the case explained that Mohan perpetrated a tax fraud over at least 10 years that caused New York state taxpayers and the state’s treasury department millions of dollars.  Mohan has agreed to pay $5.5 million dollars in back taxes and penalties to the State of New York and the Relator that is credited with bringing forth this fraud will receive a $1.1 million dollars whistle blower reward.

Individuals and businesses that lie about the payment of taxes are now not protected totally from their wrongdoing.  False Claims Act cases allow individuals or entities to bring forward allegations of fraudulent wrongdoing so long as the amounts in question are of a certain level.  While cases are not allowed for an individual who may owe $5,000 or $10,000 in unpaid taxes, cases such as Mr. Mohan’s are certainly allowed, including for those individuals that owe millions of dollars in taxes.

If you have evidence to support claims of fraud against a business or entity, please contact us as soon as possible.

THE SCOPE OF FRAUD

Amazingly, some estimates have suggested that approximately 10% of the entire annual United States budget is lost to companies or individuals who are defrauding the government. The United States Federal budget for 2010 was $3.456 billion, meaning around $345.6 million was wrongfully wasted on fraud.

The entities defrauding the government do so in a variety of ways: Medicare or Medicaid fraud whereby they bill the government for services which they never provided or overbill for services that were provided; SEC Trading; Tax Fraud; TARP Fraud; Military/Defense contract fraud; Pharmaceutical Manufacturing;contract fraud involving any number of large government spending programs; or other types public benefit fraud.

HELPING THE PUBLIC.

As a whistleblower attorney, we are interested in speaking with persons willing to make known the truth about company practices and are willing to file a qui tam or whistleblower action. One area in particular we are interested in discussing are lawsuits involving medical device companies where the company is alleged to have overcharged, engaged in kickback programs, and the like. We will nevertheless investigate claims in a variety of areas.

Workers and persons all across the country witness actions at their work that may be unlawful or even corrupt. Unfortunately, some employees and workers feel that they will be fired, terminated, harrassed or punished if they report an unlawful or corrupt action. These reporters, however, are protected by the law as a Whistleblower and can receive compensation because of the False Claims Act or the Medicaid False Claims Act. If you have reported actions that may be fraudulent, then you should talk to a Whistleblower or qui tam lawyer about your facts.

Whistleblowers help the government to get back billions of dollars each year with the help of the False Claims Act. In fact, fraudulent Medicaid claims are also caught by whistleblowers having the Medicaid False Claims Act on their side. If you report a false claim or fraudulent action to the government, then the government will give you, the whistleblower, a part of the money that gets recovered. This is because of qui tam requirements. Qui Tam means that a person files a lawsuit for the king and also for him or herself. The phrase is qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur, or, “he who sues for the king as well for himself.”

These requirements and lawsuits were made popular during the Civil War when many people were getting away with fraudulent actions against the government. In 1986, the False Claims Act was amended to raise the total compensation given to people who reported fraudulent actions, or whistleblowers. If a whistleblower works with a lawyer then it may be possible for them to get three times the amount the government would get in damages and also get additional compensation for general fines.

TYPES OF CASES

The most common situations that could form the basis of a Qui Tam action include:

• Submitting a false or fraudulent record, bill or statement to the government in order to fraudulently obtain money such as reporting a medical service that was never performed for Medicare or Medicad;
• Conspiring with a third party to submit or present have a false or fraudulent claim to the government;
• Withholding property of the government with the intent to defraud or conceal the property from the government;
• Fraudulently buying property of the government from someone not authorized to sell that property; and
• Making a false statement to fraudulently avoid paying money to the government or to avoid delivering property to the government.

FOR HELP, PLEASE CONTACT US.

We help whistleblowers on a contingency basis, meaning there is no fee charged for our work unless there is a recovery. We also front any and all expenses. No matter where you are located — we will represent you. We will come to you, you will not have to come to us.

Attorneys in our firm and attorneys that we work with on Whistleblower, Qui Tam, False Claims Act cases have represented a host of persons making claims, for violations of federal tax law, Medicare law and more.

For more information, please contact our team of whitsleblower and qui tam attorneys today.

CALL 1-800-632-1404

or fill out this form below for a free initial consultation.

CALL US TOLL FREE FOR HELP: 1-800-632-1404

We are attorneys that investigate False Claims Act cases nationwide, including in the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky and elsewhere for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, contractor fraud and more against a range of employers including healthcare providers, medical device companies, defense contractors, and pharmaceutical companies. We stand ready to provide a free case evaluation to you; please call us today.

False Claims Act Lawyer Discusses Par Pharmaceutical Settlement

As attorneys that represent individuals and entities that blow the whistle on fraud in the medical and healthcare industries including for pharmaceutical drug and medical device companies, it was refreshing to see that Par Pharmaceuticals has agreed to pay $45  million dollars to resolve civil and criminal allegations related to off label marketing.

New Jersey based Par Pharmaceuticals Companies, Inc. pleaded guilty in federal court on March 5, 2013 and agreed to pay $45 million dollars to resolve the company’s promotion of its prescription drug Megace es for uses not approved as safe and effective by the Food and Drug Administration.  Chief Executive Officer Paul B. Capanelly pleaded guilty on behalf of Par.  Federal courts have fined for $18 million dollars and ordered $4.5 million in criminal forfeiture.  Par also agreed to pay $22.5 million to resolve its civil liability.

Par pleaded guilty to an information charging it with a criminal misdemeanor for mis-branding Megace es in violation of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.  The drug is one that was approved by the FDA to treat Anorexia or other significant weight loss suffered by patients with AIDS.  Megace, however, was distributed nationwide by Par as mis-branded because it lacked adequate directions for use in the treatment of non-Aids related geriatric wasting a use that was intended by Par but never approved by the FDA.  Once approved, a drug may not be distributed in interstate commerce for unapproved or “off-label” uses until the company receives FDA approval for the new intended uses.

The civil settlement resolves allegations that Par, by promoting the sale and use of Megace for uses that were not FDA approved, caused false claims to be submitted to Medicare programs.  The United States alleged in the lawsuit brought initially by a Relator that Par deliberately and improperly targeted sales to elderly nursing home residents with weight loss, whether or not such patients were suffering from Aids, and loss a long term care sales force to market to this population.  During this marketing campaign, Par was allegedly aware of adverse side effects associated with the use of magistral in elderly patients, including an increased risk of deep vein thrombosis, toxic reactions, impaired renal function, and mortality.  Par allegedly made unsubstantiated and misleading representations about the superiority of the drug over other products, and encouraged providers to switch patients from generic Magistral acetate to Megace es despite having conducted no well controlled study to support a claim for greater efficacy.

The settlement resolves three lawsuits filed under the whistle blower provisions of the False Claims Act, including three different cases filed in New Jersey.  As part of the settlement, Relators Makim and Combs (who filed the first lawsuit) will receive $4.4 million dollars.

There are two important things to take out of this lawsuit.  The first is that there were three different Relators that filed a claim under the False Claims Act, but only one will receive any monies.  The last two will receive nothing because the False Claims Act only allows recovery by the first in time in filing a case.  Second, it reminds us all that it takes individuals willing to blow the whistle on fraud in order to correct wrongdoing by companies including pharmaceutical company and medical device companies.

If you know of any potential fraud, call us today for a confidential evaluation so that we might of help.

THE SCOPE OF FRAUD

Amazingly, some estimates have suggested that approximately 10% of the entire annual United States budget is lost to companies or individuals who are defrauding the government. The United States Federal budget for 2010 was $3.456 billion, meaning around $345.6 million was wrongfully wasted on fraud.

The entities defrauding the government do so in a variety of ways: Medicare or Medicaid fraud whereby they bill the government for services which they never provided or overbill for services that were provided; SEC Trading; Tax Fraud; TARP Fraud; Military/Defense contract fraud; Pharmaceutical Manufacturing;contract fraud involving any number of large government spending programs; or other types public benefit fraud.

HELPING THE PUBLIC.

As a whistleblower attorney, we are interested in speaking with persons willing to make known the truth about company practices and are willing to file a qui tam or whistleblower action. One area in particular we are interested in discussing are lawsuits involving medical device companies where the company is alleged to have overcharged, engaged in kickback programs, and the like. We will nevertheless investigate claims in a variety of areas.

Workers and persons all across the country witness actions at their work that may be unlawful or even corrupt. Unfortunately, some employees and workers feel that they will be fired, terminated, harrassed or punished if they report an unlawful or corrupt action. These reporters, however, are protected by the law as a Whistleblower and can receive compensation because of the False Claims Act or the Medicaid False Claims Act. If you have reported actions that may be fraudulent, then you should talk to a Whistleblower or qui tam lawyer about your facts.

Whistleblowers help the government to get back billions of dollars each year with the help of the False Claims Act. In fact, fraudulent Medicaid claims are also caught by whistleblowers having the Medicaid False Claims Act on their side. If you report a false claim or fraudulent action to the government, then the government will give you, the whistleblower, a part of the money that gets recovered. This is because of qui tam requirements. Qui Tam means that a person files a lawsuit for the king and also for him or herself. The phrase is qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur, or, “he who sues for the king as well for himself.”

These requirements and lawsuits were made popular during the Civil War when many people were getting away with fraudulent actions against the government. In 1986, the False Claims Act was amended to raise the total compensation given to people who reported fraudulent actions, or whistleblowers. If a whistleblower works with a lawyer then it may be possible for them to get three times the amount the government would get in damages and also get additional compensation for general fines.

TYPES OF CASES

The most common situations that could form the basis of a Qui Tam action include:

• Submitting a false or fraudulent record, bill or statement to the government in order to fraudulently obtain money such as reporting a medical service that was never performed for Medicare or Medicad;
• Conspiring with a third party to submit or present have a false or fraudulent claim to the government;
• Withholding property of the government with the intent to defraud or conceal the property from the government;
• Fraudulently buying property of the government from someone not authorized to sell that property; and
• Making a false statement to fraudulently avoid paying money to the government or to avoid delivering property to the government.

FOR HELP, PLEASE CONTACT US.

We help whistleblowers on a contingency basis, meaning there is no fee charged for our work unless there is a recovery. We also front any and all expenses. No matter where you are located — we will represent you. We will come to you, you will not have to come to us.

Attorneys in our firm and attorneys that we work with on Whistleblower, Qui Tam, False Claims Act cases have represented a host of persons making claims, for violations of federal tax law, Medicare law and more.

For more information, please contact our team of whitsleblower and qui tam attorneys today.

CALL 1-800-632-1404

or fill out this form below for a free initial consultation.

CALL US TOLL FREE FOR HELP: 1-800-632-1404

We are attorneys that investigate False Claims Act cases nationwide, including in the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky and elsewhere for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, contractor fraud and more against a range of employers including healthcare providers, medical device companies, defense contractors, and pharmaceutical companies. We stand ready to provide a free case evaluation to you; please call us today.

False Claims Act Lawyer Discusses Texas Fraud

As attorneys who represent persons that want to blow the whistle on governmental fraud, I thought it would be useful to provide you with this information on a mission trio convicted of healthcare fraud in a probe by state and federal officials in Texas.

As attorneys that represent individuals who want to reveal fraud against the Government, I wanted to provide notice of a recent whistle blower suit in an area of law that is not necessarily as common as some might perceive.  In Providence, Rhode Island, a recently unsealed whistle blower lawsuit claims a former civilian Navy employee from Virginia and a now defunct Navy contractor engaged in bribery and kick-back scheme going back to at least 2004.  The lawsuit, which was first filed in a federal court in Georgia in 2006, predates by more than four years criminal charges brought by federal prosecutors in Rhode Island in 2011 that alleges similar schemes by some of the same people that cost the government almost $10 million dollars.  The lawsuit says that the allegations were reported in May 2006 to the Department of Defense and the United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.  Both the whistle blower suit and the criminal suit in Rhode Island centered on alleged wrongdoing by former civilian Navy employee Ralph Mariano and Anjan Dutta-Gupta, founder of the Navy contractor Advanced Solutions for Tomorrow, or ASFT which had offices in Georgia and Rhode Island (and is no longer in business).

The suits allege that Mariano, who worked for the Naval Under Seal Warfare Center, had power to add or refuse millions of dollars in payments to contractors and used that power to orchestrate a scheme in which he would approve payments to ASFT, which would then funnel some of the money back to him and others through shell corporations.  ASFT held $120 million dollars in Navy contracts when the charges were first brought in February 2011.  Mariano remained in his job until 2011.  He has pleaded not guilty in the criminal case.  Dutta-Gupta and two others have pleaded guilty in federal court in Rhode Island in the criminal case.  Dutta-Gupta admitted paying $8 million dollars in bribes over more than a decade.

The whistle blower suit was brought in May 2006 by Rekha and Karan Vasudeva, who say they were involved in setting up a Roswell, Georgia company that was used to issue fictitious invoices to ASFT and a company owned by Spencer.  The whistle blower suit makes a number of allegations against other people and companies, including about bid rigging and U.S. Army contracts.  To date, there is no decision on whether or not the United States has intervened or not in the suit that was filed in Georgia, and has since been re-filed in Rhode Island to include additional details based on the criminal case, including adding Spencer and Naval as defendants.

Many people in the sense of false claims do not consider fraud against the United States Government and its military divisions.  Nevertheless, this lawsuit shows that there can and is fraud that occurs against the United States Military.  In this particular case, it was an individual and a company that took advantage of the United States and attempted to reap almost $10 million dollars.  All it took was a couple alerting the United States of this fraud in order for the United States to take the action it needed to do to recover the monies that were stolen.

If you know of any fraud against the government, including but not limited to against cases involving fraud for setting up unlawful contracts, persons or entities preparing false invoices for services not performed, or any similar fraudulent activity, please contact us.

If you have any knowledge about a similar cause of action involving improper medical benefits offered to the public, improper kickbacks received by doctors or healthcare providers, or similar alleged false claims, please contact us.

THE SCOPE OF FRAUD

Amazingly, some estimates have suggested that approximately 10% of the entire annual United States budget is lost to companies or individuals who are defrauding the government. The United States Federal budget for 2010 was $3.456 billion, meaning around $345.6 million was wrongfully wasted on fraud.

The entities defrauding the government do so in a variety of ways: Medicare or Medicaid fraud whereby they bill the government for services which they never provided or overbill for services that were provided; SEC Trading; Tax Fraud; TARP Fraud; Military/Defense contract fraud; Pharmaceutical Manufacturing;contract fraud involving any number of large government spending programs; or other types public benefit fraud.

HELPING THE PUBLIC.

As a whistleblower attorney, we are interested in speaking with persons willing to make known the truth about company practices and are willing to file a qui tam or whistleblower action. One area in particular we are interested in discussing are lawsuits involving medical device companies where the company is alleged to have overcharged, engaged in kickback programs, and the like. We will nevertheless investigate claims in a variety of areas.

Workers and persons all across the country witness actions at their work that may be unlawful or even corrupt. Unfortunately, some employees and workers feel that they will be fired, terminated, harrassed or punished if they report an unlawful or corrupt action. These reporters, however, are protected by the law as a Whistleblower and can receive compensation because of the False Claims Act or the Medicaid False Claims Act. If you have reported actions that may be fraudulent, then you should talk to a Whistleblower or qui tam lawyer about your facts.

Whistleblowers help the government to get back billions of dollars each year with the help of the False Claims Act. In fact, fraudulent Medicaid claims are also caught by whistleblowers having the Medicaid False Claims Act on their side. If you report a false claim or fraudulent action to the government, then the government will give you, the whistleblower, a part of the money that gets recovered. This is because of qui tam requirements. Qui Tam means that a person files a lawsuit for the king and also for him or herself. The phrase is qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur, or, “he who sues for the king as well for himself.”

These requirements and lawsuits were made popular during the Civil War when many people were getting away with fraudulent actions against the government. In 1986, the False Claims Act was amended to raise the total compensation given to people who reported fraudulent actions, or whistleblowers. If a whistleblower works with a lawyer then it may be possible for them to get three times the amount the government would get in damages and also get additional compensation for general fines.

TYPES OF CASES

The most common situations that could form the basis of a Qui Tam action include:

• Submitting a false or fraudulent record, bill or statement to the government in order to fraudulently obtain money such as reporting a medical service that was never performed for Medicare or Medicad;
• Conspiring with a third party to submit or present have a false or fraudulent claim to the government;
• Withholding property of the government with the intent to defraud or conceal the property from the government;
• Fraudulently buying property of the government from someone not authorized to sell that property; and
• Making a false statement to fraudulently avoid paying money to the government or to avoid delivering property to the government.

FOR HELP, PLEASE CONTACT US.

We help whistleblowers on a contingency basis, meaning there is no fee charged for our work unless there is a recovery. We also front any and all expenses. No matter where you are located — we will represent you. We will come to you, you will not have to come to us.

Attorneys in our firm and attorneys that we work with on Whistleblower, Qui Tam, False Claims Act cases have represented a host of persons making claims, for violations of federal tax law, Medicare law and more.

For more information, please contact our team of whitsleblower and qui tam attorneys today.

CALL 1-800-632-1404

or fill out this form below for a free initial consultation.

CALL US TOLL FREE FOR HELP: 1-800-632-1404

We are attorneys that investigate False Claims Act cases nationwide, including in the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky and elsewhere for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, contractor fraud and more against a range of employers including healthcare providers, medical device companies, defense contractors, and pharmaceutical companies. We stand ready to provide a free case evaluation to you; please call us today.

False Claims Act Lawyer Discusses Durable Medical Equipment Fraud

As attorneys who represent persons that want to blow the whistle on governmental fraud, I thought it would be useful to provide you with this information on a mission trio convicted of healthcare fraud in a probe by state and federal officials in Texas.

The owner of a now defunct McAllen, Texas area durable medical equipment (DME) business, his wife and another former employee have been convicted for their rolls in a conspiracy and scheme to defraud Medicare and Medicaid through fraudulent billings.  From early 2004 through late 2011, Monticello Herrera, who did business as RGV DME in the McAllen, Texas area engaged in and directed a scheme to submit fraudulent claims to Medicare and Texas Medicaid for power wheelchairs, incontinent supplies, hospital beds and mattresses, as well as other DME supplies.  The government contended that this fraudulent scheme submitted or caused to be submitted more than $11,000,000 in false and fraudulent claims to Medicare and Texas Medicaid for which Herrera received an excess of $6.1 million dollars.  The trio admitted that 85% of their Medicare and Texas Medicaid billings were false and fraudulent.

The trio admitted marketers were used to obtain Medicare and Medicaid identification numbers and other information from beneficiaries which they in turn used to fraudulently bill Medicare and Medicaid for DME that was either never prescribed or prescribed but never delivered.  The Herrera’s also admitted that they and their marketers attempted to obtain referrals or patients or orders for DME from doctors in exchange for gifts.

Also in Texas, a Houston medical equipment company manager was sentenced to 120 months in prison, and a delivery driver was sentenced to 41 months in prison for a Medicare fraud scheme.  Houston area residents Oliver and Nkuku and Calistas Edoize were sentenced to 120 months in prison and 41 months in prison, respectively, for their roles in a DME fraud scheme.  According to court documents, Nkuku was the manager of and controlled the day-to-day operations of KO Medical, Inc., a Houston area DME company.  Edoize was the delivery driver.  Nkuku was convicted of Count I of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and three counts of healthcare fraud after a week long trial in July 2010.

They began billing Medicare for fraudulent DME in 2007 according to court documents.  Nkuku submitted over $1,000,000 in claims to Medicare on behalf of KO for DME, including power wheelchairs that were medically unnecessary.  For the wheelchairs and accessories were billed as catastrophe related in connection with hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Ike and Gustav, even though many of the Medicare beneficiaries, including some who testified at trial, never owned a power wheelchair during these catastrophes or had owned one that was not damaged during these catastrophes.  Edoize admitted to delivering medically unnecessary DME including power wheelchairs, the Medicare beneficiaries who he knew did not need, and in some cases did not even want, the DME.

A prevalent area of false claims against the government involve durable medical equipment, which includes supplies such as wheelchairs, hospital beds, hospital mattresses, and more.  If you have knowledge about a company that is submitting false claims to the government for durable medical equipment, including distributing power wheelchairs to persons that do not need them, or do not even want them, or you are aware of a company that is billing Medicare for durable medical equipment that is never delivered, we would welcome the opportunity to discuss that false claims investigation with you.  Please call us immediately at 1-800-632-1404, or please fill out the form on this page for more information.

If you have any knowledge about a similar cause of action involving improper medical benefits offered to the public, improper kickbacks received by doctors or healthcare providers, or similar alleged false claims, please contact us.

THE SCOPE OF FRAUD

Amazingly, some estimates have suggested that approximately 10% of the entire annual United States budget is lost to companies or individuals who are defrauding the government. The United States Federal budget for 2010 was $3.456 billion, meaning around $345.6 million was wrongfully wasted on fraud.

The entities defrauding the government do so in a variety of ways: Medicare or Medicaid fraud whereby they bill the government for services which they never provided or overbill for services that were provided; SEC Trading; Tax Fraud; TARP Fraud; Military/Defense contract fraud; Pharmaceutical Manufacturing;contract fraud involving any number of large government spending programs; or other types public benefit fraud.

HELPING THE PUBLIC.

As a whistleblower attorney, we are interested in speaking with persons willing to make known the truth about company practices and are willing to file a qui tam or whistleblower action. One area in particular we are interested in discussing are lawsuits involving medical device companies where the company is alleged to have overcharged, engaged in kickback programs, and the like. We will nevertheless investigate claims in a variety of areas.

Workers and persons all across the country witness actions at their work that may be unlawful or even corrupt. Unfortunately, some employees and workers feel that they will be fired, terminated, harrassed or punished if they report an unlawful or corrupt action. These reporters, however, are protected by the law as a Whistleblower and can receive compensation because of the False Claims Act or the Medicaid False Claims Act. If you have reported actions that may be fraudulent, then you should talk to a Whistleblower or qui tam lawyer about your facts.

Whistleblowers help the government to get back billions of dollars each year with the help of the False Claims Act. In fact, fraudulent Medicaid claims are also caught by whistleblowers having the Medicaid False Claims Act on their side. If you report a false claim or fraudulent action to the government, then the government will give you, the whistleblower, a part of the money that gets recovered. This is because of qui tam requirements. Qui Tam means that a person files a lawsuit for the king and also for him or herself. The phrase is qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur, or, “he who sues for the king as well for himself.”

These requirements and lawsuits were made popular during the Civil War when many people were getting away with fraudulent actions against the government. In 1986, the False Claims Act was amended to raise the total compensation given to people who reported fraudulent actions, or whistleblowers. If a whistleblower works with a lawyer then it may be possible for them to get three times the amount the government would get in damages and also get additional compensation for general fines.

TYPES OF CASES

The most common situations that could form the basis of a Qui Tam action include:

• Submitting a false or fraudulent record, bill or statement to the government in order to fraudulently obtain money such as reporting a medical service that was never performed for Medicare or Medicad;
• Conspiring with a third party to submit or present have a false or fraudulent claim to the government;
• Withholding property of the government with the intent to defraud or conceal the property from the government;
• Fraudulently buying property of the government from someone not authorized to sell that property; and
• Making a false statement to fraudulently avoid paying money to the government or to avoid delivering property to the government.

FOR HELP, PLEASE CONTACT US.

We help whistleblowers on a contingency basis, meaning there is no fee charged for our work unless there is a recovery. We also front any and all expenses. No matter where you are located — we will represent you. We will come to you, you will not have to come to us.

Attorneys in our firm and attorneys that we work with on Whistleblower, Qui Tam, False Claims Act cases have represented a host of persons making claims, for violations of federal tax law, Medicare law and more.

For more information, please contact our team of whitsleblower and qui tam attorneys today.

CALL 1-800-632-1404

or fill out this form below for a free initial consultation.

CALL US TOLL FREE FOR HELP: 1-800-632-1404

We are attorneys that investigate False Claims Act cases nationwide, including in the states of Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi, Kentucky and elsewhere for Medicare fraud, tax fraud, contractor fraud and more against a range of employers including healthcare providers, medical device companies, defense contractors, and pharmaceutical companies. We stand ready to provide a free case evaluation to you; please call us today.

False Claims Act Lawyer Discusses The Statute of Limitations

As False Claims Act attorneys, and especially attorneys who represent clients that have the courage to blow the whistle on fraud against the federal government, we are occasionally asked “What is the statute of limitations for a false claims act case?” In other words, “How long do I have to bring a claim under the false claims act once I know of potential fraud.”

First, you should remember that you can only bring a claim if you are THE FIRST to bring it.  If you are the second to file, the odds are that you will receive nothing.

Second, The False Claims Act has a rather complex statute of limitations.  It is ostensibly a six year limitations period, but there is also a ten year statute of repose and an “equitable tolling” provision, under which the plaintiff has three years to bring an action “after the date when facts material to the right of action are known or reasonably should have been known by the official of the United States charged with responsibility to act in the circumstances.”  31 U.S.C. § 3731(b).  An “official of the United States’ includes a qui tam plaintiff seeking to enforce on the United States’ behalf. United States ex rel. Hyatt v. Northrop Corp, 91 F.3d 1211, 1217 n.8 (9th Cir. 1996).  Thus, the limitations period for a qui tam plaintiff can be extended beyond six years if the equitable tolling provision applies.  Id.  The plaintiff is entitled to the longer of the two time periods, either six years or three years after equitable tolling begins.  31 U.S.C. § 3731(b).

If you have any knowledge about a similar cause of action involving improper medical benefits offered to the public, improper kickbacks received by doctors or healthcare providers, or similar alleged false claims, please contact us.

THE SCOPE OF FRAUD

Amazingly, some estimates have suggested that approximately 10% of the entire annual United States budget is lost to companies or individuals who are defrauding the government. The United States Federal budget for 2010 was $3.456 billion, meaning around $345.6 million was wrongfully wasted on fraud.

The entities defrauding the government do so in a variety of ways: Medicare or Medicaid fraud whereby they bill the government for services which they never provided or overbill for services that were provided; SEC Trading; Tax Fraud; TARP Fraud; Military/Defense contract fraud; Pharmaceutical Manufacturing;contract fraud involving any number of large government spending programs; or other types public benefit fraud.

HELPING THE PUBLIC.

As a whistleblower attorney, we are interested in speaking with persons willing to make known the truth about company practices and are willing to file a qui tam or whistleblower action. One area in particular we are interested in discussing are lawsuits involving medical device companies where the company is alleged to have overcharged, engaged in kickback programs, and the like. We will nevertheless investigate claims in a variety of areas.

Workers and persons all across the country witness actions at their work that may be unlawful or even corrupt. Unfortunately, some employees and workers feel that they will be fired, terminated, harrassed or punished if they report an unlawful or corrupt action. These reporters, however, are protected by the law as a Whistleblower and can receive compensation because of the False Claims Act or the Medicaid False Claims Act. If you have reported actions that may be fraudulent, then you should talk to a Whistleblower or qui tam lawyer about your facts.

Whistleblowers help the government to get back billions of dollars each year with the help of the False Claims Act. In fact, fraudulent Medicaid claims are also caught by whistleblowers having the Medicaid False Claims Act on their side. If you report a false claim or fraudulent action to the government, then the government will give you, the whistleblower, a part of the money that gets recovered. This is because of qui tam requirements. Qui Tam means that a person files a lawsuit for the king and also for him or herself. The phrase is qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur, or, “he who sues for the king as well for himself.”

These requirements and lawsuits were made popular during the Civil War when many people were getting away with fraudulent actions against the government. In 1986, the False Claims Act was amended to raise the total compensation given to people who reported fraudulent actions, or whistleblowers. If a whistleblower works with a lawyer then it may be possible for them to get three times the amount the government would get in damages and also get additional compensation for general fines.

TYPES OF CASES

The most common situations that could form the basis of a Qui Tam action include:

• Submitting a false or fraudulent record, bill or statement to the government in order to fraudulently obtain money such as reporting a medical service that was never performed for Medicare or Medicad;
• Conspiring with a third party to submit or present have a false or fraudulent claim to the government;
• Withholding property of the government with the intent to defraud or conceal the property from the government;
• Fraudulently buying property of the government from someone not authorized to sell that property; and
• Making a false statement to fraudulently avoid paying money to the government or to avoid delivering property to the government.

FOR HELP, PLEASE CONTACT US.

We help whistleblowers on a contingency basis, meaning there is no fee charged for our work unless there is a recovery. We also front any and all expenses. No matter where you are located — we will represent you. We will come to you, you will not have to come to us.

Attorneys in our firm and attorneys that we work with on Whistleblower, Qui Tam, False Claims Act cases have represented a host of persons making claims, for violations of federal tax law, Medicare law and more.

For more information, please contact our team of whitsleblower and qui tam attorneys today.

CALL 1-800-632-1404

or fill out this form below for a free initial consultation.