Tag: False Claims Act
Physician Whistleblower Protections: What You Need to Know
As a physician, your primary concern is the health and safety of your patients. Sometimes, this means speaking out when you witness violations of healthcare laws or unethical practices. Unfortunately, the act of reporting such violations can sometimes put your job and career in jeopardy. Fortunately, federal and state laws provide protections for physicians who …
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Halunen Law Attorneys Join Coalition in Letter to Senator Grassley On Barr Nomination
Lawyers Who Represent Whistleblowers Halunen Law’s False Claims Act attorneys, chaired by Susan Coler, have joined a coalition of lawyers who represent whistleblowers, along with United States Attorneys, academics, and public interest groups, in sending a letter to U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley. Asked him to ensure that Attorney General nominee William Barr …
Severance Agreement? Seek advice before signing
I get calls several times a week from executives and professionals who want me to review a severance agreement that was just presented to them by their employer. When I ask if they think they have any potential claims against the company, people seem bewildered. I’m often told they just want me to review the …
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Whistleblower Physician to Collect $4.5 Million
Honesty is the best policy. It’s one of the first lessons we learn, and yet it seems there is an epidemic of selective memory loss among providers who choose to defraud Medicare. Our journey begins in South Carolina where another medical provider is paying out millions in an effort to put the allegations of wrongdoing …
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Minnesota Based Hospice Provider to Pay $18 Million in Response to Whistleblower Allegations
Hospice and greed. Two words that are diametrically opposed and when combined—toxic. At its inception, hospice in America was mostly a philanthropic movement led by volunteers and non-profit entities. Today the hospice industry is big business including a large percentage of for-profit providers. According to the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC) in 2013 Medicare hospice …
Forged Under Civil War Fire, The False Claims Act Continues To Serve As Basis For Private Citizens To Blow The Whistle On Would-Be Fraudsters Of The Government Trust
Forged Under Civil War Fire, The False Claims Act Continues To Serve As Basis For Private Citizens To Blow The Whistle On Would-Be Fraudsters Of The Government Trust Under a little-known law, private citizens with knowledge of fraud against the government can bring a lawsuit against the offending organization. Called the False Claims Act, the …
Whistleblower Alleges Shocking Fraud Involving Cancer Patients
The diagnosis: Cancer. Few words have the power to alter one’s life as dramatically as those six letters linked with the phrase – “test results.” The Journey begins. The two critical elements for any cancer patient are affordable care and a physician that, above else, you can trust with your life. There is an ethical …
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Protecting the Public with Whistleblower Protections
The Star Tribune published an article today about how a mental health agency, Complementary Support Services, that was supposed to provide quality services to a vulnerable population, instead is reported to have engaged in rampant fraud that “bilked the state’s Medicaid program of millions of dollars and provided inadequate supervision of unlicensed practitioners.” That private …
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Whistleblowers Take a Stand – Can Misleading Statements by For-Profit Schools Create Liability Under the False Claims Act?
In the past several years For-Profit Colleges and Universities have been under intense scrutiny by both state and federal agencies for claims that they mislead prospective students about placement rates, starting salaries, and credit transfer. Students often obtain federally insured student loans and grants to attend these schools. In fact, the Department of Education has …
Legislature Updates Minnesota False Claims Act – Expands Time to File Whistleblower Claim and Persons Covered by the Act
On April 22, 2013, Governor Dayton signed HF 290 into law, which modified Minnesota’s False Claims Act found at Minn. Stat. § 15C. The bill primarily changed the statute so that it would reward and facilitate False Claims Act cases at least as effectively as the federal law. By making these changes Minnesota should be …