Whistleblower files qui tam action against Waycross hospital for Medicare fraud
A nurse at the Satilla Regional Medical Center in Waycross, Georgia filed a qui tam action against the hospital in 2007 for allegedly defrauding Medicare and Medicaid. Recently, the Department of Justice announced that it will be taking over the case.
Georgia Public Broadcasting has the story.
A qui tam law suit is when an individual sues a business for defrauding the government by filing a false claim. Qui tam law suits are most commonly filed in connection with health care fraud although virtually any type of company may be sued. To succeed in such a law suit, a whistle blower needs independent and direct knowledge that a business has defrauded the government. Whistleblowers are typically employees of the business being sued, since generally only employees are privy to such information.
If a qui tam suit is successful, a whistle blower can expect to be awarded 25 to 30 percent of the amount that is recovered. However, in some cases, the government will decide to take over the case. In those situations, a whistle blower can expect to earn 15 to 25 percent. It is not uncommon for whistle blowers to recover millions of dollars especially if the fraud was pervasive or if the law suit concerns a large corporation.
In the recent Waycross hospital case, the nurse filed suit after she saw a doctor puncture an artery of a patient during surgery and then abandon the patient. That patient later died. U.S. District Attorney Ed Tarver announced that his office was taking over the case after discovering that the hospital’s actions may have been profit-driven. According to Tarver, the hospital knew the doctor in question was not credentialed to conduct that type of surgery but allowed the doctor to do so anyway. The DOJ also believes that Medicaid and Medicare paid for treatments that were unnecessary.
Aside from unnecessary treatments, a qui tam action may be proper anytime an employer over charges, bills for something that never existed, produces inferior goods, or uses false or stolen identities in order to defraud the government out of money.
Our whistle blower lawyers are able to help employees and individuals file suit against companies that defraud the government. We understand that many employees are hesitant to speak out against their employer; however, it is important for employees to know that federal law protects whistle blowers from retaliation by their employers.
