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.

(more…)



Health Care Enforcement Quarterly Roundup | Q4 2018

By , , , , , , , , , , and on Jan 30, 2019
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This latest installment of the Health Care Enforcement Quarterly Roundup reflects on trends that persisted in 2018 and those emerging trends that will carry us into 2019 and beyond. Leading off with the US Department of Justice’s (DOJ) December announcement of its fiscal year 2018 False Claims Act (FCA) recoveries, it remains clear that the health care industry is a primary target of FCA enforcement activity. We also revisit the current state of implementation of DOJ’s Granston Memorandum, substantive revisions to the Yates Memorandum, critical interpretations of the landmark Escobar case (including those expected in the coming year), and continued enforcement activity in the pain management industry.

Click here to read the full issue of the Health Care Enforcement Quarterly Roundup. 

Click here to download a PDF of the issue. 



Process Improvements Not a Basis to Establish Scienter: District Court Grants Summary Judgment to Defendants

By on Jan 22, 2019
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In a January 10, 2019 decision, the US District Court for the District of Arizona granted summary judgment to Defendants because Relators failed to raise a genuine issue of material fact on the issue of “knowledge” under the False Claims Act (FCA) which, as everyone knows by now, includes deliberate ignorance or reckless disregard. The decision is significant for the simple fact that courts can be reluctant to address scienter on summary judgment, and in many cases prefer to simply let the issue go to trial. Moreover, the court’s opinion makes clear that corrections to claiming issues and improvements to systems that result in better claims submission do not function as evidence of knowledge or recklessness under the FCA. In tort law parlance, “remedial measures” are not evidence of fraud.

In Vassallo v. Rural/Metro Corp., a qui tam lawsuit in which the government declined to intervene (but filed a statement of interest attempting to support the Relator’s opposition to summary judgment), the allegations primarily concerned Defendants’ transition from using internal coders to an outside coding vendor to code claims for ambulance transports. There were some alleged issues with the coding performed by the outside coding company, which Defendants worked to improve and correct during and after the transition. Notably, Defendants had been operating under a Corporate Integrity Agreement (CIA) during the time period at issue, and consistently received positive results from the Internal Review Organization (IRO) with respect to coding, billing and claims submission.

The district court held that no reasonable jury could have found that Defendants acted with deliberate indifference or reckless disregard. Relators contended, among other things, that Defendants’ transition to the outside coding vendor was reckless, and that they completed the transition despite knowing about the vendor’s coding and billing errors and issues. In response, Defendants pointed to evidence regarding their training and oversight efforts, their instructions that the vendor’s coders should undercode if they had any doubt about the correct code to be used, their positive results under the CIA, and their retention of Deloitte to address any continued issues with the vendor’s coding. (more…)



Health Care Dominates FCA Judgments and Settlements in 2018

By on Dec 31, 2018
Posted In

On December 21, just before the government shutdown began, the Civil Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced its fiscal 2018 False Claims Act (FCA) statistics.  According to DOJ, FCA judgments and settlements totaled over $2.8 billion for the year.

While this number is the lowest total since 2009, the reason for this result is related to a drop in non-health care related cases.  In fact, the statistics show that health care remains the top driver of FCA activity, both in the number of cases filed and total dollars recovered; only about $370 million of the $2.8 billion, or about 13 percent, came from non-health care cases. Almost all of the fiscal 2018 number–over $2.5 billion–came from cases involving the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). This appears to be the largest percentage of the total recoveries since DOJ began reporting these statistics in 1987. $1.9 billion of this $2.5 billion came from qui tam cases (also resulting in over $266 million in relator share awards). Indeed, 2018 continued the trend into the ninth consecutive year where health care case recoveries exceeded $2 billion.

The overall number of new FCA matters also fell for the second year in a row; 767 new cases were filed in 2018, with 645 of them filed by relators. Interestingly, the number of new HHS cases also is trending downwards. 2018 saw 506 new HHS cases, 446 of which were filed by relators. In 2017, DOJ reported 550 new HHS cases (495 from relators) and 573 new HHS cases (503 from relators) in 2016, which was the all-time high record of new HHS cases. The 2018 total is consistent with number of new HHS cases filed since 2010.

DOJ’s press release notably emphasized three policy issues outside of dollars that have defined DOJ’s FCA activities in 2018: the continued focus on alleged violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute, 42 U.S.C. § 1320-7b; the movement seek dismissal of unmeritorious cases as discussed in the Granston Memo; and “holding individuals accountable” by seeking monetary resolutions with individuals in addition to corporations. We should expect all three of these trends to continue into 2019.

DOJ’s 2018 False Claims Act statistics can be found here and the press release can be found here.



SCOTUS to Tackle Circuit Split on FCA Statute of Limitations After Cochise Consultancy, Inc. Decision

By on Dec 20, 2018
Posted In

On November 16, 2018, the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in United States ex rel. Hunt v. Cochise Consultancy, Inc., 887 F.3d 1081 (11th Cir. 2018). The question presented to the Court is “whether a relator in a False Claims Act qui tam action may rely on the statute of limitations in 13 U.S.C. § 3731(b)(2) in a suit in which the United States has declined to intervene and, if so, whether the relator constitutes an “official of the United States” for purposes of Section 3731(b)(2).”

Section 3731(b) requires an FCA case be filed either (1) six years after the date on which the violation…is committed, or (2) three years 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, but in no event more than 10 years after the date on which the violation is committed, whichever is later.

In Cochise Consultancy, Inc., the Eleventh Circuit held that § 3731(b)(2) was available to a relator in a non-intervened case. The court also held that the relevant person whose knowledge triggers the limitations period is an official of the United States.

The Eleventh Circuit’s decision deepens the divide among circuits as to how to apply § 3731(b)(2), creating a three-way circuit split. The decision is a departure from the Fourth Circuit and Tenth Circuit. Both courts determined that § 3731(b)(2) extends the statute of limitations period only if the government is a party. See United States ex rel. Sanders v. N. Am. Bus Indus., Inc., 546 F.3d 288 (4th Cir. 2008); United States ex rel. Sikkenga v. Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah, 472 F.3d 702 (10th Cir. 2006).

The decision is also a departure from the Third Circuit and Ninth Circuit. The Third Circuit and Ninth Circuit also held that § 3731(b)(2) is available when the government does not intervene.  However, the three-year period depends on the relator’s knowledge. See United States ex rel. Malloy v. Telephonics Corp., 68 F. App’x 270 (3d Cir. 2003); United States ex rel. Hyatt v. Northrop Corp., 91 F.3d 1211 (9th Cir. 1996).

The Supreme Court’s decision to tackle this issue will provide clarity to businesses subject to the FCA because it will likely provide an answer as to how long a relator has to bring an action when the government has not intervened. It could also do away with any forum shopping that relators currently have the ability to engage in.



Eleventh Circuit Rules Qui Tam Relator Barred from Forfeiture Case

By on Oct 25, 2018
Posted In

The False Claims Act (FCA) allows the government to pursue any “alternate remedy available” if the government chooses not to intervene in a qui tam action. See 31 U.S.C. § 3730(c)(5). However, if the government pursues an “alternate remedy,” the FCA gives the qui tam plaintiff the “same rights” in the “alternate” proceeding that the plaintiff would have had if the qui tam action “had continued.” Id. In U.S. v. Couch et al., the question before the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit was whether the FCA allows a qui tam plaintiff to intervene in a criminal forfeiture proceeding when the government chooses to prosecute fraud rather than intervene in the qui tam plaintiff’s action. No. 17-13402 (Oct. 17, 2018). The Eleventh Circuit held that criminal forfeiture law bars qui tam plaintiffs from intervening in related forfeiture proceedings.

Background

The suit stemmed from a qui tam action brought by Lori Carver, a former employee of an Alabama-based pain management company. During her employment, Carver allegedly discovered that the two doctors that ran the clinic, John P. Couch and Xiulu Ruan, submitted false claims to federal health care programs. Carver took her information to the US Attorney’s office, which encouraged her to bring a qui tam action against the doctors and the clinic. Carver brought the qui tam action in 2013 and the case remains pending. Carver is litigating the case herself, because the government chose not to intervene.

With Carver’s information, the government began investigating Dr. Couch and Dr. Ruan. Two years after Carver brought her qui tam action, the government criminally charged both doctors with conspiracy to distribute controlled substances and conspiracy to commit health care fraud. The charges in the indictment partially overlapped with Carver’s qui tam complaint. Thereafter, more defendants and charges were added to the criminal case in subsequent, superseding indictments. A jury ultimately convicted Couch on all charges and Ruan on all but one charge, which resulted in the judge issuing a preliminary forfeiture order.

Carver moved to intervene in the forfeiture proceedings, asserting a right to some of the forfeited assets. Carver primarily argued that the alternate-remedy provision allows her to intervene to claim a share of the assets she would be entitled to if the government had intervened in her qui tam action.

In response, the government argued that Carver did not have standing to intervene under the alternate-remedy provision because her qui tam case is pending—meaning that Carver has not yet established a right to a relator’s share. The government also argued that the FCA does not permit intervention in criminal cases.

The district court denied Carver’s motion to intervene and ruled that the alternate-remedy provision does not permit intervention in criminal cases.

Appeal Before Eleventh Circuit

The Eleventh Circuit took issue with the government’s jurisdictional arguments. The Eleventh Circuit concluded that Carver had standing to assert that the alternative-remedy provision gives her a right to intervene in criminal forfeiture proceedings and claim an interest in the forfeited [...]

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Southern District of Ohio Concludes that Regional Federal Reserve Banks are not “the Government” Under the FCA

By on Oct 16, 2018
Posted In

On August 20, 2018, U.S. District Judge Algenon L. Marbley of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio granted summary judgment in favor of The Brink’s Company (Brink’s), concluding that Regional Federal Reserve Banks (RFRB) are not “the Government” for purposes of the federal False Claims Act (FCA).

The relator’s qui tam action was premised on an alleged penny-swapping scheme. Brink’s and other armored carriers regularly enter Coin Terminal Agreements (CTA) with RFRBs to transport and store coins. Pursuant to one such CTA, Brink’s received, weighed, tracked and stored the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland’s coins and provided similar services to other customers. Although Brink’s maintained electronic records of the coins in its inventory, it did not segregate physical coins by customer.

The relator, a former Brink’s employee, alleged Brink’s violated its contract with the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland and defrauded the government by engaging in a penny-swapping scheme with Jackson Metals. In essence, the relator alleged that Brink’s entered into a secret agreement, allowing Jackson Metals to purchase commingled pennies, cull out the pennies minted prior to 1982, and replace them with pennies minted after 1982. Pennies minted prior to 1982 have a higher metallurgical value because of their copper content. The replacement pennies are made from lower-value zinc. The relator argued that this penny-swapping scheme deprived the government of the value of the copper.

In moving for summary judgment, Brink’s argued, in part, that the FCA did not apply because RFRBs are not “the Government” under the FCA. The court agreed. First, Judge Marbley examined the structure of the Federal Reserve. He contrasted the Board of Governors with RFRBs, noting that RFRBs “are ‘private corporations whose stock is owned by the member commercial banks within their district.’” (more…)



Northern District of California Dismisses FCA Claim with Prejudice for Inability to Point to Particular Claims for Payment

By on Oct 15, 2018
Posted In

On October 1, 2018, the District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed with prejudice a relator’s qui tam suit against Carelink Hospice Services, Inc. (Carelink) for failure to meet the heightened pleading standards mandated by Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 9(b). The court’s decision largely rested on the relator’s inability to specifically plead the existence of identifiable false claims—a strong affirmation that, in the Ninth Circuit, courts continue to hold relators to their pleading burdens.

The relator worked for Carelink, a hospice provider, for a three-month period in 2015. As a hospice provider, Carelink needed to provide certifications of terminal illness to justify admissions to the facility and, in turn, receive reimbursements from Medicare for services rendered. The relator, without identifying particular claims for reimbursement or patients, alleged that Carelink violated the FCA by seeking reimbursement for patients who Carelink knew were not terminally ill. The court seized upon the relator’s inability to point to specific claims in rendering its dismissal of the case.

Relying on Rule 9(b)’s particularity requirement, the court dismissed the relator’s complaint due to her failure to identify, with the required specificity, actual false claims. The court noted that the relator “relies on general allegations that Carelink presented false claims” but failed to “identify any reimbursements from Medicare[.]” The court came to this conclusion despite the relator’s citation to four patients about whom she alleged to have raised eligibility concerns. The court reasoned that these allegations, without “describ[ing] the nature of [her] concerns or her basis for believing the four individuals” were not eligible for Medicare reimbursements, were not enough to satisfy Rule 9(b).

The court concluded that the relator “fail[ed] to identify with particularity what ‘claims’ Caremark submitted” that were false because the allegations “do not provide a reasonable basis for [the court] to infer that claims had been submitted on behalf of any particular patient.” The court specifically dispelled the relator’s argument that, based on her extremely limited tenure with Carelink, the Rule 9(b) requirement should be relaxed in her case.

This decision confirms that, in the Ninth Circuit, a relator must allege the existence of specific, particularized, identifiable false claims submitted to the government. This confirmation serves as a strong defense against relators who do not sufficiently allege the “who, what, when, where, and how” of their FCA claims.



Circuit Court Affirms Payments for Referrals Made to Employees are Protected by the AKS Safe Harbor

By and on Aug 24, 2018
Posted In

On August 7, 2018, the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a ruling by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida dismissing a qui tam suit against the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Inc. (AHF), finding that the payments made to AHF employees for referring patients to AHF were protected by the employment safe harbor of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS).

In Jack Carrel, et al. v. AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the relator claimed that AHF, a nonprofit organization that provides medical services to patients with HIV/AIDS, paid kickbacks to employees in exchange for referring HIV-positive patients for health care services billed to federal health care programs in violation of the AKS and both the Florida and federal False Claims Acts (FCA). The relators, each former AHF directors or managers, specifically cited two allegedly representative false claims in which an employee was paid $100 for referring patients to AHF for completing follow up clinical services that were billed to the Ryan White Program. The Department of Justice and the State of Florida declined to intervene.

In response to AHF’s initial motion to dismiss on May 8, 2015, the district court dismissed all but two of the relators’ claims for lack of particularity, but permitted the claims related to payments to employees for referrals to proceed into discovery. In June 2017, after the conclusion of discovery, the district court granted summary judgment to AHF on the remaining two claims based on the applicability of employee safe harbor. Under the AKS employee safe harbor (42 U.S.C. § § 1320a-7b(b)(3)(B); 42 C.F.R. 1001.152(i)), the definition of “remuneration” excludes “any amount paid by an employer to an employee, who has a bona fide employment relationship with the employer, for employment in the furnishing of any item or service for which payment may be made in whole or in part under Medicare, Medicaid or other Federal health care programs.”  (more…)



Courts Weigh Appropriateness of Statistical Sampling in Ongoing Case

By on Jun 13, 2018
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On April 2, 2018, the magistrate judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of Indiana issued an order refusing qui tam relators’ request to conduct discovery related to claims submitted to Medicare on a nationwide basis in an ongoing False Claims Act (FCA) case.  Importantly, the judge considered whether statistical sampling could be used to establish liability under the FCA for multiple entities affiliated with the defendant when the alleged false claims in the relators’ complaint originated from a single location. The US Department of Justice (DOJ) subsequently submitted a statement of interest defending relators’ discovery request and the use of statistical sampling to establish liability for false claims, which the court has not yet addressed.

In the underlying qui tam case, the relators alleged that Evansville Hospital, a long-term acute care hospital in Indiana, and a physician violated the FCA by submitting claims to Medicare for medically unnecessary lengths of stay in order to maximize Medicare reimbursement. (more…)



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