In a first-of-its-kind prosecution, federal prosecutors have charged two healthcare executives with unlawfully distributing controlled substances, such as Adderall, through a telehealth website. These charges demonstrate the Department of Justice’s intensified focus on enforcing federal controlled substances laws in the rapidly evolving digital health landscape.
The government bases the bulk of its controlled substances charges
On Monday, June 17, 2024, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced settlements involving $11.3 million in payments for consulting companies failing to comply with cybersecurity requirements in federally funded contracts. The head of DOJ’s Civil Division stated, “Federal funding frequently comes with cybersecurity obligations, and contractors and grantees must honor these commitments. The Justice Department
Recent years have seen eye-popping judgments and settlements involving cases brought under the federal False Claims Act (FCA) and federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS). And healthcare companies have, unsurprisingly, focused their compliance efforts on these and other federal fraud-and-abuse statutes. But a recent decision out of the Second Circuit underlines the importance of incorporating state-level anti-fraud
In 2023, the government and whistleblowers were party to 543 False Claims Act (FCA) settlements and judgments, the highest number of FCA settlements and judgments in a single year. As a result, collections under the FCA exceeded $2.68 billion, confirming that the FCA remains one of the government’s most important tools to root out fraud
On February 22, 2024, Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton delivered remarks at the 2024 Federal Bar Association’s Qui Tam Conference. During those remarks, Boynton announced another record year for DOJ’s False Claims Act enforcement efforts. Specifically, Boynton announced, in 2023 alone, nearly $2.7 billion was recovered under the FCA and included the resolution of
As we near the Thanksgiving holiday, we wanted to take a moment to thank you — our readers. Eye on Enforcement has been a fun project for the Bradley’s Government Enforcement and Investigations team. But the ultimate goal of any blog is to be read, and we’re grateful to have so many devoted readers. And
The First Circuit will decide the causation standard required in False Claims Act (FCA) cases predicated on the Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS), deepening a circuit split on the issue and potentially teeing up Supreme Court intervention.
U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton asked the First Circuit to review his recent ruling that the government need not prove
On June 16, 2023, the Supreme Court in United States ex rel. Polanksy v. Executive Health Resources, affirmed the Third Circuit’s deferential standard regarding the government’s ability to dismiss False Claims Act (FCA) whistleblower cases being litigated by qui tam relators. Notwithstanding this deferential standard, the Court rejected the government’s position that it has
On April 20, 2023, the Department of Justice announced criminal charges against 18 defendants in nine federal districts, alleging over $490 million in alleged theft from federally funded COVID-19 relief programs. This clearly shows that, even as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to recede into the national memory—evidenced by the recent culmination of the national emergency
On March 3, the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice announced a two-part pilot program to encourage corporations to implement compliance programs with provisions for employee compensation incentives and clawbacks designed to prevent corporate crime. Last week, at the American Bar Association’s 38th Annual National Institute on White Collar Crime, Deputy Attorney General