False Claims Act
US, Canada and Puerto Rico
The False Claims Act is one of the most important methods of recourse that American taxpayers have against federally-funded contractors or programs who commit fraud.
The False Claims Act allows someone who knows about a fraudulent act committed against the government to file a lawsuit on behalf of the government against the wrongdoer. The person filing the claim is known as the “qui tam plaintiff” and is awarded a percentage of the recovery amount, if the claim is successful.
The person or entity who knowingly committed the fraud (the defendant), can be held liable for up to three times the government’s damages, plus civil penalties of $5,500 to $11,000 per false claim. If you know about an act of fraud that is being committed against the government, please contact the False Claims Act lawyers at Balkin & Eisbrouch, LLC.
FAQs about the False Claims Act
Who the Law Applies To
Generally speaking, the False Claims Act covers fraud involving any federally-funded contract or program (with the exception of tax fraud).
In the late 1980s and early 1990s many “qui tam” lawsuits that were filed involved Department of Defense contracts. However, in recent years, many of these types of suits have involved Medicare fraud and other fraudulent actions against other federally-funded health care programs. Examples of qui tam suits include:
- A grant recipient who charges the government for a cost not associated with the grant
- A contractor who falsifies test results or other information regarding the quality or cost of products it sells to the government
- A health care provider who bills Medicare for services that were not performed or were unnecessary
Types of Fraud Prosecuted
Countless acts of fraud have been prosecuted under the False Claims Act, thanks to citizens like you. Here are some of the more common qui tam claims that have been prosecuted:
- Submitting false service records or samples in order to show better-than-actual performance
- Falsifying natural resource production records (such as pumping, mining or harvesting more natural resources from public lands that is actually reported to the government)
- Defective testing or presenting broken or untested equipment as operational and tested
- Billing for premium equipment but actually providing inferior equipment
- Charging more than once for the same goods or service (called double billing)
- False certification that a contract falls within certain guidelines (i.e. the contractor is a minority or veteran)
- Inflating bills by using diagnosis billing codes that suggest a more expensive illness or treatment (called upcoding)
- Charging for employees that were not actually on the job, or billing for made-up hours in order to maximize reimbursements.
- Billing for drugs that are unlicensed or unapproved
- Misrepresenting the value of imported goods or their country of origin for tariff purposes
- Billing for marketing, lobbying or other non-contract-related corporate activities
- Failing to report known product defects in order to continue selling or billing the government for them
- Winning a contract through kickbacks or bribes
If you know about a fraudulent act being committed against the governments in the United States, Canada or Puerto Rico please contact the False Claims Act attorneys at Balkin & Eisbrouch, LLC today. Qui Tam suits are also known as “whistleblower” lawsuits.
