Red White and Yellow Medication Pills, representing addiction treatment

Pharma Whistleblowers Under Stress

Pharma Whistleblowers Under Stress New findings from a New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) study entitled “Whistle-blowers’ experiences in fraud litigation against pharmaceutical companies” confirm what most whistleblowers already know: whistleblowers who report health care fraud experience substantial stress and receive little support. This appears to be in line with other recently released studies which confirm that,...

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Military Contractor Fraud Triumvirate

Military Contractor Fraud Triumvirate Three prime examples of military contractor fraud deserve attention today. Two put service members at serious risk of bodily harm or death, and all of them bilked tax payers. In the first case, a subcontractor of Sikorsky agreed to pay $1.2 million to settle a FCA claim. Ceradyne, Inc., of Costa Mesa, CA,...

Dollar banknote on white table, representing whistleblower amendments, insider trading, and whistleblower awards.

A Fraud By Any Other Name Would Be As… Expensive

A Fraud By Any Other Name Would Be As… Expensive The False Claims Act provides for treble damages and a penalty between $5,500 and $11,000 for anyone who submits a false claim to the United States. With treble damages and penalties, committing fraud against the government can become a very expensive proposition. It’s hard to see how...

Stapler Fraud – Stealth Fighter Jet Fraud

Stapler Fraud – Stealth Fighter Jet Fraud Sure, office supplies aren’t nearly as sexy or controversial as Lockheed Martin’s F-22 Raptor Stealth fighter. Who hasn’t dreamed of being in the cockpit of a F-22 when our boss is trying to take away our stapler? Unfortunately office supply companies are not immune to the temptations of defrauding the government....

Medtronic Shelling out the Big Bucks

Medtronic Shelling out the Big Bucks Medical device manufacturer Medtronic has voluntarily disclosed that it paid almost $16 million in royalties and consulting fees in the first quarter of 2010. Of this amount, the vast majority–$14.2 million–went to orthopaedic specialists or surgeons, with $13.9 million of that in the form of royalties for surgical inventions....

Tax Returns with Portfolio, IRS form 1040 and Cash

Why is the IRS Sitting on its Hands?

Why is the IRS Sitting on its Hands? It has been more than three years since UBS whistleblower extraordinaire Bradley Birkenfeld approached the DOJ, IRS, and SEC with information about potential tax evasion by U.S. clients facilitated by UBS AG. Since then, the IRS appears to have been sitting on its haunches and not making...

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A New Flavor: Ambulance Fraud

A New Flavor: Ambulance Fraud There is fraud at all stages of the health care delivery process, and as a settlement in a district court case in the Eastern District of New York emphasizes, even ambulance companies are trying to get a bigger piece of that Federal pie, courtesy of you the taxpayer. The case is: United States ex...

Whistleblower in a Coal Mine

Whistleblower in a Coal Mine Remember the story of the miners who died in the West Virginia coal mine before the story was overshadowed by the latest fossil fuel debacle? Well, a whistleblower has filed a federal whistleblower complaint claiming that Massey fired him in retaliation for pointing out safety violations at mines in West...

Foot Dragging on the Gulf Spill

Foot Dragging on the Gulf Spill It remains to be seen whether the Gulf oil spill will become Obama’s Katrina. A recent New York Times/CBS News poll indicates that at the very least, some people believe that Obama is not doing enough to fix things in the Gulf. The poll found that 59% of respondents do not believe...

Crankin’up the HEAT

Crankin’up the HEAT HEAT is the rather odd acronym for the Health Care Fraud Prevention and Enforcement Action Team. It is the brainchild of Attorney General Holder and Health and Human Services Secretary Sebelius, and despite the great stretches of the imagination it takes to make it work as an acronym (HCFPEAT doesn’t exactly roll...

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