FCA UPDATE
FCA UPDATE
Exploring Recent Developments in False Claims Act Litigation, Enforcement and Compliance
FCA UPDATE
Exploring Recent Developments in False Claims Act Litigation, Enforcement and Compliance
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Unanimous Supreme Court Ruling Expands Statute of Limitations for Filing Qui Tam Cases

By on Jun 18, 2019
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On May 13, the US Supreme Court (the Court) unanimously ruled in Cochise Consultancy, Inc., v. U.S. ex rel. Hunt that the “government knowledge” statute of limitations under the federal False Claims Act (FCA), §31 U.S.C. 3729, et seq., applies regardless of whether the government intervenes in a case. As a result, in some circumstances, relators will have up to four years longer to file qui tam claims.

Background

The FCA permits a relator bring a qui tam civil action on behalf of the federal government against “any person” who “knowingly presents . . . a false or fraudulent claim for payment” to the government or to certain third parties acting on the government’s behalf. 31 U. S. C. §3730(b). The relator must deliver a copy of the complaint and supporting evidence to the government, which then has 60 days to decide whether to intervene in the action. During this time, the complaint remains under seal. If the government intervenes, it assumes primary responsibility for prosecuting the case, although the relator may continue to participate. If the government does not intervene, the relator has the right to pursue the case alone. The relator receives a share of any proceeds from the action, generally 15-25 percent if the government intervenes and 25-30 percent if it does not intervene.

The general statute of limitations for all civil actions under Section 3730 of the FCA requires that cases be filed within six years of the alleged violation or three years after relevant material facts are known or should have been known by the “official of the United States charged with responsibility to act in the circumstances,” whichever is later, but not more than 10 years after the violation. 31 U.S.C. §3731.

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Recent District Court Decisions Highlight Conflicting Stances on Dismissal of Frivolous FCA Claims

By on Aug 17, 2018
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On June 29, 2018, federal district courts in California and Kentucky issued conflicting decisions over the deference owed to prosecutors in seeking to dismiss frivolous False Claims Act (FCA) claims and the effect of the January 2018 Granston Memo, which recognized dismissal as an “important tool” to advance governmental interests, preserve limited resources and avoid adverse precedent.

In United States et al. v. Academy Mortgage Corporation (N.D. Cal.), the relator, an underwriter at Academy Mortgage Corporation (Academy), claimed that a mortgage loan originator violated the FCA by falsely certifying loans for government housing insurance. The government declined to intervene after the relator filed her initial complaint, which limited the alleged misconduct to a one-year period at the specific branch where the relator was employed. The relator next filed an amended complaint that included additional allegations and identified specific employees allegedly complicit in the fraud. This time, the government moved to dismiss the complaint under 31 U.S.C. § 3730(c)(2)(A), which authorizes the government to move to dismiss an FCA action even though it did not intervene in the litigation, as it remains the real party in interest.

In its motion to dismiss, the government argued that allowing the suit to continue would drain government resources and was not justified by a cost-benefit analysis. The government also argued that its conclusion that dismissal was appropriate was subject to deference. (more…)



The Opioid Crisis: An Emerging False Claims Act Risk Trend

By on Feb 5, 2018
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The government’s focus on the US opioid crisis has been consistently expanding over the past year beyond manufacturers to reach prescribers and health care providers who submit claims to federal health care programs for opioid prescriptions. These efforts increasingly include investigations under the False Claims Act and administrative actions, in addition to the more traditional criminal approach to these issues.

With the Trump administration’s public health emergency orders, it is expected for the government’s enforcement activities, including those instigated by relators and their counsel, to grow in this area.

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DOJ Issues Memorandum Outlining Factors for Evaluating Dismissal of Qui Tam FCA Cases in Which the Government Has Declined to Intervene

By , and on Jan 29, 2018
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As first reported in the National Law Journal, the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Civil Division, recently issued an important memorandum to its lawyers handling qui tam cases filed under the False Claims Act (FCA) outlining circumstances under which the United States should seek to dismiss a case where it has declined intervention and, therefore, is not participating actively in the continued litigation of the case against the defendant by the qui tam relator. (more…)



Escobar Upends $350 Million FCA Verdict

By on Jan 17, 2018
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On January 11, 2018, a federal court in Florida overturned a $350 million False Claims Act (FCA) jury verdict against a nursing home operator, finding “an entire absence of evidence of the kind a disinterested observer, fully informed and fairly guided by Escobar, would confidently expect on the question of materiality.”

In United States ex. rel. Ruckh v. CMC II LLC et al., the relator claimed that a skilled nursing facility and its management company failed to maintain “comprehensive care plans” ostensibly required by Medicare regulations as well as a “handful of paperwork defects” (for example, unsigned or undated documents). In addition, the relator alleged a corporate-wide scheme to bill Medicare for services that were not provided or needed. (more…)



DOJ Announces Significant Shift Towards Affirmative Dismissal Of “Frivolous” Qui Tam Complaints: A New Exit Strategy For Defendants?

By and on Nov 16, 2017
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Attendees at the Health Care Compliance Association’s Health Care Enforcement Compliance Institute are reporting that, Michael Granston, Director, Civil Frauds, Commercial Litigation Branch of the Civil Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), announced a significant shift in policy for the DOJ in dealing with False Claims Act (FCA) complaints that are deemed “frivolous” on the merits. Acknowledging the burden on the resources of all parties caused by the litigation of frivolous FCA matters, Mr. Granston reportedly stated that, going forward, once it has determined that the allegations of a qui tam complaint lack merit, the DOJ will more aggressively exercise its discretion to move to dismiss the case rather than leave to the qui tam relator in every instance the option of whether to continue the litigation. Senior management—including boards of directors, in-house corporate counsel and chief compliance officers—should take notice of this new, potentially meaningful, opportunity to extricate FCA defendants from burdensome qui tams pursued by relators purely for settlement value. (more…)



Motions in Limine Filed in Lance Armstrong/US Postal Service Litigation Raise FCA Damages, Government Knowledge and Relator Character Issues on Which Court’s Rulings May Have Widespread Impact

By on Jul 6, 2017
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We reported back in March on the US District Court for the District of Columbia’s summary judgment decision in the Lance Armstrong/Floyd Landis/US Postal Service (USPS) False Claims Act (FCA) litigation, centered on Lance Armstrong’s use of performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) while he was leading a professional cycling team sponsored by the USPS. A pack of motions in limine (MILs) filed by the parties over the past few weeks suggest that the case may well be headed to trial this fall, and raise some notable legal issues to watch as it continues to unfold, including: (more…)



Hospital’s Reasonable Interpretation of Ambiguous Law Supports Dismissal of Relator’s Case

By on Aug 17, 2016
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In a decision issued August 8th, the Eighth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a whistleblower’s False Claims Act (FCA) suit alleging the University of Minnesota Medical Center-Fairview (UMMC) wrongly claimed a “children’s hospital” exemption to Medicaid cuts based on a reasonable interpretation of an unclear state law.

In 2011, Minnesota passed an amendment that cut Medicaid reimbursement levels for inpatient services by 10 percent, but exempted “children’s hospitals.” The law did not define the term “children’s hospital,” instead the statute exempted “children’s hospitals whose inpatients are predominantly under 18 years of age” from the rate cut. UMMC believed that the University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital should qualify for this exemption and contacted the Minnesota Department of Human Services (MDHS) to obtain confirmation. In 2012, MDHS issued the exemption and a retroactive refund.

The relator, an MDHS official who claimed to be the drafter of the exemption language, complained within MDHS that UMMC’s children’s hospital did not qualify based on the intended meaning of the term “children’s hospital.” After further review prompted by the relator, MDHS reversed its position, finding a “lack of clarity in the statutory definition of what constitutes a children’s hospital” but that the UMMC exemption was not “consistent with the law or how other similarly situated children’s facilities are treated” and sought return of the retroactive refund. The Minnesota Legislature later amended the law in May 2014 to retroactively exempt all UMMC Medicaid patients aged under 18 from the rate reduction.

The relator’s suit, filed in September 2013, alleged that UMMC knew that University of Minnesota Children’s Hospital (which is a unit inside a larger hospital) did not legally qualify as a “children’s hospital” under the state law. The relator attempted to characterize UMMC’s efforts to obtain an exemption as making false claims or false statements to MDHS as well as support for a “reverse false claims” theory because, according to relator’s logic, UMMC had an obligation to refund the money received after obtaining the exemption because UMMC knew it was not entitled to the exemption in the first place.

The district court and the Eighth Circuit disagreed with the relator. Both courts found that the state law was unclear and “in the absence of a statutory definition of ‘children’s hospital,’ it was reasonable for UMMC to inquire about the proper classification of its children’s unit … A reasonable interpretation of ambiguous statutory language does not give rise to a FCA claim.”  The relator relied heavily on his role as drafter of the relevant amendment and the legislature’s historical treatment of children’s hospitals in making his arguments. The court found “this reliance cripples his argument. Legislative history is properly consulted only in light of a textual ambiguity.”

Whether a reasonable interpretation of an ambiguous law can state a claim under the FCA has been the subject of several recent decisions in favor of defendants, many of which we have covered on this blog, such as:

Eight Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment Grant Based on [...]

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Cert Petition Denied in Gonzalez v. Planned Parenthood

By and on May 19, 2015
Posted In

In a previous post, we discussed the petition for certiorari in Gonzalez v. Planned Parenthood of Los Angeles (S. Ct. No. 14-4080), a False Claims Act (FCA) case in which the relator alleged that Planned Parenthood knowingly overcharged the government for contraceptives it provided to low-income individuals in California.

In Gonzalez, the Ninth Circuit held that the district court properly dismissed the relator’s claims because documents attached to the complaint showed that the government knew about Planned Parenthood’s allegedly improper billing practices; thus, the relator could not demonstrate the requisite scienter under the FCA. The relator argued that the issue of government knowledge was worthy of Supreme Court consideration due to a split between the Ninth Circuit and other circuits on this issue.

We opined that Relator’s cert petition did not raise an issue worthy of consideration by the Supreme Court. Consistent with our expectation, the Supreme Court denied the cert petition on May 18, 2015.



Whistleblower Wins Reinstatement Fight, Demonstrating the Need for Detailed Personnel Files

By on May 11, 2015
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In 2012, a jury concluded that Bayer Corporation (Bayer) unlawfully terminated a sales representative, Mike Townsend, because he reported to the Arkansas Attorney General that with the alleged knowledge of Bayer’s sales force, physicians were overbilling Medicaid for Bayer’s drugs. See Townsend v. Bayer Corp., 774 F.3d 446, 452 (8th Cir. 2014).

Shortly before Townsend was terminated, his corporate credit card had been suspended for about six months, because his wife had inadvertently used his expense reimbursements from Bayer to pay other bills. After Townsend paid off the outstanding balance on his corporate credit card account, the account was reactivated. As alleged, however, Bayer terminated Townsend after the account was reactivated, claiming that the closed credit card account did not allow Townsend to entertain physicians. A jury concluded that Townsend was terminated because of his alleged whistleblowing activities, and not for the reasons Bayer had asserted.

After the jury delivered its verdict, the court then ordered Bayer to reinstate Townsend “at the same rate of pay and with the same seniority he held at the time of his termination.” See Townsend v. Bayer Corp., 11-cv-00055-JM, ECF No. 121 (E.D. Ark. 2013). Bayer offered him a position at a lower rate of pay and seniority in Knoxville, Tennessee, more than 500 miles away from his current home in Little Rock, Arkansas. After Townsend’s motion for reinstatement was stayed pending an appeal to the Eighth Circuit, the district court concluded that Bayer’s job offer was not a good faith effort to comply with the Court’s order that Townsend be restored to a comparable position under 31 U.S.C. § 3730(h)(2).

This case presented the rare circumstance of a False Claims Act (FCA) whistleblower who wishes to continue working for a company that has allegedly terminated him for reporting unlawful conduct. In many ways, this case presents some guidance as to how companies should treat whistleblowers. Although it is not the case that companies can never terminate employees who have reported unlawful conduct to the government, they certainly cannot terminate employees because of their whistleblowing activities. See 31 U.S.C. § 3730(h)(1) (providing relief for employees who are “discriminated against . . . because of lawful acts done by the employee . . . in furtherance of an [FCA] action”).

If a company has legitimate non-discriminatory reasons to terminate an employee who has reported alleged fraud, the company should document these reasons in the employee’s personnel file. It is particularly helpful to the employer if the reasons for termination transpired or commenced prior to the employee reporting the alleged fraud to the government.  Many courts have determined that terminated employees are only entitled to relief if their protected conduct was a “but-for” cause—meaning that the employee would not have been terminated if he had not reported the alleged fraud. Accordingly, legitimate reasons for termination, especially if properly documented, can overcome the anti-retaliation provisions of the FCA.



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