In 2024, federal courts issued a number of important decisions in False Claims Act (FCA) cases that are particularly noteworthy for the health care and life sciences industries. We focus here on decisions that further develop...more
1/17/2025
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Article II ,
Causation ,
Compliance ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Eighth Amendment ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Life Sciences ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Medicare Advantage ,
Qui Tam ,
Scienter ,
SCOTUS ,
United States ex rel Polansky v Executive Health Resources Inc ,
Whistleblowers
In 2023, the Supreme Court and the United States Courts of Appeals published a number of significant decisions with implications for entities in the health care and life science industries facing False Claims Act (FCA)...more
2/12/2024
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Appeals ,
Causation ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Healthcare ,
Life Sciences ,
Scienter ,
SCOTUS ,
Teva Pharmaceuticals ,
United States ex rel Polansky v Executive Health Resources Inc ,
US ex rel Tracy Schutte et al v SuperValu Inc et al
In a resounding unanimous 9-0 decision, the Supreme Court rejected the argument that a defendant’s subjective belief is irrelevant under the False Claims Act (FCA) when evaluating whether a defendant “knowingly” submitted a...more
The Supreme Court recently denied petitions for writs of certiorari in three closely watched cases where parties asked the Court to clarify the heightened pleading standard governing fraud allegations under the False Claims...more
On June 3, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in Azar v. Allina Health Services. The case involved a challenge by hospitals over whether the Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”) was required to proceed...more
6/5/2019
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Azar v Allina Health Services ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Hospitals ,
Low-Income Issues ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Advantage ,
Medicare Part A ,
Medicare Part C ,
Notice and Comment ,
Pay Reductions ,
Provider Payments ,
Reaffirmation ,
Retroactive Application ,
SCOTUS ,
Substantive Rule ,
Vacated
On January 15, 2019, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Azar v. Allina Health Services, a prominent case involving a challenge by hospitals over when Medicare’s instructions to its contractors impact a “substantive...more
2/5/2019
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Appeals ,
Azar v Allina Health Services ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Certiorari ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Disproportionate Share Adjustments ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
Interpretive Rule ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Part C ,
Notice and Comment ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Physician Medicare Reimbursements ,
Provider Payments ,
Rulemaking Process ,
SCOTUS
On January 15, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a hotly-contested case involving a challenge by hospitals over when Medicare’s instructions to its contractors impact a “substantive legal standard” and thus...more
1/16/2019
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Appeals ,
Azar v Allina Health Services ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Certiorari ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Disproportionate Share Adjustments ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
Interpretive Rule ,
Medicare ,
Medicare Part C ,
Notice and Comment ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Physician Medicare Reimbursements ,
Provider Payments ,
Rulemaking Process ,
SCOTUS
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) filed an amicus curiae brief with the Supreme Court on November 30, 2018 in a closely watched False Claims Act (FCA) lawsuit, after the Supreme Court asked for the Solicitor...more
On June 16, 2016, a unanimous Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Universal Health Services v. United States ex rel. Escobar (“Escobar”). The Court ruled that under certain circumstances the theory of “implied...more
6/21/2016
/ Conditions of Payment ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
False Implied Certification Theory ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Pleading Requirements ,
Fraud ,
Implied Certification ,
Material Misrepresentation ,
Materiality ,
Medicaid ,
SCOTUS ,
Universal Health Services Inc v United States ex rel Escobar ,
Unlicensed Medical Providers
Whether you are on the defense side or the relator side of the qui tam world, you can count the Supreme Court’s opinion in Kellogg, Brown & Root Services, Inc. v. United States ex. Rel. Carter as a win and a loss. Since...more