The U.S. Department of Justice last week announced more than $3.5 billion False Claims Act (FCA) recoveries for fiscal year 2015. According to the department’s fraud statistics, total recoveries exceeded $3.5 billion for the fourth consecutive year, but were the lowest since 2011.
“The False Claims Act has again proven to be the government’s most effective civil tool to ferret out fraud and return billions to taxpayer-funded programs,” said DOJ’s Principal Assistant Attorney General Benjamin C. Mizer, in a December 3, 2015 press release. “The recoveries announced today help preserve the integrity of vital government programs that provide health care to elderly and low income families, ensure our national security and defense, and enable countless Americans to purchase homes.”
Companies and individuals in the health care industry accounted for the largest portion of the total recoveries at $1.9 billion. This included $330 million in settlements and judgements involving hospitals, $96 million involving the pharmaceutical industry, and a $32.3 million settlement with a nursing home, the largest failure of care settlement involving a skilled nursing home chain in the department’s history.
This content originally appeared in Professional Front Page News. To read the whole story, you must be a subscriber. Subscribe now.
Josh is an Editor at Advisen in the Research & Editorial division. He is the lead editor responsible for several of Advisen’s Front Page News editions and he also originates custom research on behalf of Advisen’s largest insurance company clients. Contact Josh at [email protected].
