Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. agreed earlier this month to pay $678 million to settle an SDNY False Claims Act case. The SDNY alleged that Novartis violated the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute by giving doctors cash payments, exorbitant speaker fees, and expensive dinners to induce them to prescribe Novartis cardiovascular and diabetes drugs. The
Compound Pharmacies Enter False Claims Act And Anti-Kickback Statute Settlement
Compound prescription drugs have increasingly become a target for DOJ health fraud enforcement activities. In early April, the SDNY U.S. Attorney’s Office entered into a civil settlement with two pharmacies and two individuals for submitting fraudulent claims for reimbursement for compounded prescription drugs in violation of the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute.
Compounding
EDNY Courts Enjoin Transmission of Fraudulent Robocalls
The corona virus pandemic has presented new opportunities for fraud, particularly against the elderly and vulnerable, and these fraudulent schemes are often carried out through robocalls.
The EDNY U.S. Attorney’s Office recently obtained civil injunctions against defendants alleged to be facilitating massive volumes of fraudulent robocalls to consumers, through a preliminary injunction decision issued by
Second Circuit Holds Case Challenging Marijuana Classification As Schedule I Drug In Abeyance Pending Agency Exhaustion
Last week, in Washington v. Barr, the Second Circuit addressed a case seeking to strike down the federal government’s classification of marijuana as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). The Court held that plaintiffs had failed to exhaust their administrative remedies before the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Rather than dismissing
Supreme Court Unanimously Decides Relator May Use Ten-Year Limitation Period In Declined FCA Case
The Supreme Court today unanimously decided that a relator may take advantage of the longer ten-year statute of limitations under the False Claims Act in a case in which the United States has declined to intervene, as long as the action is brought within three years of Government knowledge of the alleged fraud. Cochise Consultancy,
DOJ Outlines Guidance For Cooperation Credit in False Claims Act Cases
Earlier this week, the Department of Justice Civil Division announced guidelines for factors to consider and credit to be given in False Claims Act investigations and prosecutions. The guidelines broadly stressed three forms of conduct that may merit credit, including voluntary self-disclosure of misconduct, meaningful cooperation with an FCA investigation, and implementation of adequate and
MTA Required To Provide Disability Access In Subway Station Renovation Unless Technically Infeasible
The replacement of stairways at the Middletown Road Subway Station in the Bronx triggered accessibility requirements that may include installing elevators, according to a recent decision from SDNY District Judge Edgardo Ramos. In Bronx Independent Living Services v. Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Judge Ramos held that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and NYC Transportation Authority
Fugitive Relator’s Alternate Remedy Claim For Part Of $25.6 Million FCA Settlement Fails In Second Circuit
The Second Circuit examined the False Claims Act’s “alternate remedy” provision for the first time yesterday, holding that a fugitive who had dismissed his qui tam action was not entitled to a share of a $25.6 million FCA settlement. In United States v. L-3 Communications EOTech, Inc., the Second Circuit held that relator Milton
Proposed EDNY Consent Decree Mandates Upgrades to Hillview Reservoir in Yonkers Over the Next Thirty Years
The Eastern District of New York filed a Safe Drinking Water Act complaint this week against the City of New York and the NYC Department of Environmental Protection, seeking to require the City to cover the Hillview Reservoir in Yonkers, part of the City’s public water system. At the same time, the EDNY also lodged
Second Circuit Judges Spar Over RFRA Private Right of Action
Second Circuit Judges recently traded strong language in opinions accompanying the denial of a petition for en banc review in Tanvir v. Tanzin.
In Tanvir, Plaintiffs alleged that, in retaliation for their refusal to serve as informants, federal officials improperly placed or retained plaintiffs’ names on the “No Fly List” in violation of