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03.28.13

The whistleblower attorneys at Goldberg Kohn are committed to fighting fraud against the government and protecting the rights of whistleblowers. Below are summaries of recent developments pertaining to whistleblower, qui tam, and False Claims Act actions throughout the country.

The U.S. Department of Justice announced this week that Hospice of Arizona L.C., along with its parent company and a related entity, have agreed to pay $12 million to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by submitting or causing the submission of false claims to the Medicare program between Sept. 1, 2002 and Dec. 31, 2010 for Hospice of Arizona patients who did not need end of life care or for whom the hospice facilities billed at a higher reimbursement rate than the rate to which it was entitled.

U.S. Department of Justice Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz issued a formal statement commending the efforts of the first-ever whistleblower ombudsperson and praising the role that whistleblowers play in “advancing the [Office of Inspector General’s] mission to address wasteful spending and improve the [Department of Justice’s] operations.” On behalf of the OIG, he pledged to review and be responsive to whistleblower complaints and allegations of retaliation.

A new report issued by the Taxpayers Against Fraud indicates that between 2006 and 2012 Texas recovered over $821 million for state and federal taxpayers after the distribution of the relators’ shares and Texas State attorney fees and costs. Nearly all of the recoveries – more than $800 million – were recovered as a result of fraud cases initiated by whistleblowers. This report highlights the success of the Texas Attorney General's office, and the critical role that whistleblowers play in helping state governments recover illegally obtained funds.

Please contact us at (312) 863-7222 if you would like to learn more about any of the aforementioned whistleblower news updates or would like to schedule a free, confidential appointment with one of our nationally-recognized whistleblower attorneys.