Medical Device Legal News with Sam Bernstein: Episode 14
The Justice Insiders: FIFA Corruption Trial – Will the Feds Score Another Goal?
Rob DeConti on the Latest Guidance and Insights from the OIG at HHS
As of February 18, 2025, the First Circuit Court of Appeals requires the government to prove “but-for” causation in Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS)-based False Claims Act (FCA) cases. The court reasoned in United States v....more
As in recent years, the False Claims Act (FCA) continued to serve as a tool utilized by the federal government against government contractors in 2024. The government collected more than $2.9 billion as a result of 558 FCA...more
Second Circuit Partially Affirms Novartis’ Motion to Dismiss AKS Claims - Last week, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court’s ruling that dismissed allegations from a whistleblower who claimed that...more
Owner, Operator of Texas Lab Charged for $79 Million Medical Testing Fraud Scheme - On November 20, Osman Syed, the owner and operator of a laboratory in Texas, was charged with three counts of health care fraud,...more
Judge Orders Government to Pay Relators a Cut of FCA Settlement - On November 4, a federal judge from the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts ordered the government to pay the relators’ share of a...more
New York City Mayor Eric Adams Charged for Accepting Foreign Bribes - On September 26, New York City Mayor Eric Adams was charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, bribery, and two counts of soliciting donations from...more
Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program (“Pilot Program”), aimed at incentivizing whistleblowers to report potential criminal conduct. The announcement was anticipated, having been previewed in March 2024 by Deputy...more
Former Congressman George Santos Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud and Aggravated Identity Theft - On August 19, former US Representative George Santos pleaded guilty to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. As part of the...more
Precision Lens Pays $12 Million to Resolve FCA and AKS Violations - Late last week, Precision Lens and the estate of its former principal agreed to pay $12 million to resolve allegations regarding violations of the False...more
Texas Pharmaceutical Marketer Sentenced for $59 Million Medications Fraud Conspiracy - On July 12, Quintan Cockerell, a Texas pharmaceutical marketer, was sentenced to over two years in prison and ordered to pay more than...more
Teva and DOJ May Reach Settlement in Closely Watched AKS Lawsuit - On June 16, Teva Pharmaceuticals filed a request with the First Circuit Court of Appeals seeking to hold in abeyance its interlocutory appeal concerning...more
Chicago Laboratory Owner Charged with Defrauding Medicare in $60 Million COVID-19 Test Kit Scheme - The Chicago-based owner of two laboratories, Zoom Labs Inc. and Western Labs Co., has been charged with health care fraud...more
Cooperation Spares Former NBA Shooting Guard From Prison - Former National Basketball Association (NBA) shooting guard, Antoine Wright, was sentenced to time served after he pled guilty to conspiracy and aggravated...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced its False Claims Act (“FCA”) enforcement statistics for FY 2023 and identified key priorities for FCA enforcement in 2024 and beyond. The DOJ continues to pursue FCA...more
As we do every year, this issue revisits the key cases and other developments from the year gone by. And by most metrics, 2023 was a notable year for the False Claims Act (FCA). We start with the numbers: The Department...more
This year will see a continued proliferation of enforcement against health-care fraud, with old and new theories. Some hot spots for enforcement will involve cases about new technologies; data outliers; entities perceived as...more
Binance to Pay Historic $4 Billion Fine - Binance Holdings Limited, the operator of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, agreed to pay $4.3 billion to resolve allegations that it violated the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA)...more
On November 22, 2023, while many were preparing for the Thanksgiving holiday, the Office of Inspector General (OIG) posted a consumer alert (Alert) warning the public about a fraud scheme involving monthly billing for remote...more
Nevada Man Sentenced to 51 Months Imprisonment for Prize-Notification Fraud Scheme - Earlier this week, a Nevada man was sentenced to 51 months in prison for perpetrating a prize-notification scheme that defrauded...more
Medical Marketer Convicted of $55 Million Fraud Scheme - Late last week, a federal jury in the Northern District of Texas convicted Quintan Cockerell for his role in a $55 million fraud conspiracy involving TRICARE, a...more
Walgreens Medicaid Fraud Case Kicked Back to Trial Court - On August 15, 2023, the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit issued an opinion reversing a district judge’s dismissal of False Claims Act (FCA) claims...more
Court Unseals Charges Alleging Nearly $15 Million in Fraudulent PPP Loans - Earlier this week, federal prosecutors in the Southern District of New York announced the unsealing of a criminal complaint charging six...more
This issue of McDermott’s Healthcare Regulatory Check-Up highlights significant regulatory activity for April 2023. We discuss several criminal and civil enforcement actions related to the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) and the...more
Recent Interview With FCA Plaintiff Bar Attorneys Offers Key Insight into Trends in Anti-Kickback Litigation - During a recent interview commemorating the 50th anniversary of the enactment of the Anti-Kickback Statute, two...more
This issue of McDermott’s Healthcare Regulatory Check-Up highlights significant regulatory activity for March 2023. We discuss several criminal and civil enforcement actions that involve Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS) and...more