Whistleblower Lawyer Blog

Another State Qui Tam Whistleblower Law is Born–Georgia Bill Passes Senate and Goes to Governor for Signature

Another state whistleblower law, with qui tam provisions that follow the federal False Claims Act, was born today. The Georgia Senate passed the “State False Medicaid Claims Act” today, and it goes to Governor Sonny Perdue for his signature.

We have been writing about this and other new state whistleblower statutes. Representative Edward Lindsey deserves credit for his sponsorship of the bill.

Our firm was fortunate enough to have been part of the legislative effort. Rep. Lindsey asked Michael A. Sullivan (one of this whistleblowerlawyerblog co-authors) to testify and explain the whistleblower law three times, before the House Judiciary Committee and the Senate Insurance and Labor Committee. There were no dissenting votes in any of the committee votes.

(more…)

New Qui Tam Whistleblower Law Clears Senate Committee in Georgia

A new qui tam whistleblower law has cleared another hurdle toward passage. Georgia’s Senate Insurance and Labor Committee unanimously approved the new “State False Medicaid Claims Act” this afternoon. As we have written about previously on this whistleblower lawyer blog, the new whistleblower law has already passed the Georgia House.

After an introduction by Senator Seth Harp, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Edward Lindsey, asked Inspector General Doug Colburn of the Department of Community Health and attorney Michael A. Sullivan (co-author of this
(more…)

Amendments to New IRS Whistleblower Law Considered

We have had many calls this week from potential clients in our IRS Whistleblower practice, probably because msn.com featured an article about the IRS Whistleblower program on Monday that linked to our whistleblower lawyer blog.

As I have explained to many whistleblower clients, the new regulations for the IRS Whistleblower Rewards Program are in the works, but have not been issued. We have been pursuing IRS Whistleblower claims under the new program and have found the IRS agents to be excited about it.

Adding to the mix for those seeking a whistleblower attorney is that Congress is considering amendments to the law that established the new IRS Whistleblower Program in December 2006. Among the possible changes/additions are a provision opening up the Whistleblower Program to more claims by setting a different threshold for the amount of money in question, which could allow more whistleblowers to qualify for a reward.

(more…)

Guilty Plea in Pharmaceutical Fraud Case

A subsidiary of the drug manufacturer Pfizer has agreed to plead guilty in a kickback scheme and to pay a criminal fine of $19.68 million, according to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, Michael J. Sullivan (not to be confused with Michael A. Sullivan, one of the authors of this whistleblower lawyer blog).

The government’s announcement was that Pharmacia & Upjohn Company, Inc., a subsidiary of Pfizer, Inc., was charged with offering a kickback in connection with the administration and distribution
(more…)

New York Becomes Latest State to Agree to Enact a State False Claims Act

The New York legislature has become the latest state to agree to the enactment of a State False Claims Act, when it approved passage of such a whistleblower law as part of approving the state budget. The Buffalo Times reported on this encouraging development.

We have written before about why states are passing their own whistleblower laws to protect taxpayer money. Congress has created significant financial incentives for states that pass their own state false claims acts, with whistleblower provisions that are at
(more…)

New Medicaid Whistleblower Law Passes House in Georgia

We have been writing about why states are passing their own whistleblower laws, with qui tam provisions that are at least as effective as the federal False Claims Act. Georgia’s legislature took a giant step forward when its House of Representatives today passed the State False Medicaid Claims Act–by an overwhelming margin of 164-2!

As we have mentioned before on this whistleblower lawyer blog, when the House Judiciary Committee met to discuss and approve the new whistleblower statute, two witnesses were invited
(more…)

Whistleblower Laws of Two More States–Hawaii and Virginia–Are Approved by Feds

States are figuring out how to pass whistleblower laws with effective “qui tam” provisions, so that they qualify to receive more money from Medicaid fraud settlements. The Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services has announced that, unlike 7 of the 10 state whistleblower laws that OIG had previously reviewed, the whistleblower laws of Hawaii and Virginia pass muster under the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005.

We have previously discussed why states are passing or improving their own
(more…)

Whistleblower Law Sponsor Testifies About Iraq Contractor Fraud

Whistleblowers and whistleblower attorneys may consider Senator Charles Grassley of Iowa as the “patron saint” of protecting taxpayer money from fraud against the government. Sen. Grassley continues his great work as he testifies today before the Senate Judiciary Committee about Iraq contractor profiteering and fraud.

The Senator already claimed another recent victory by spearheading passage of the new IRS Whistleblower Rewards Program. Sen. Grassley saw how cost-effective the False Claims Act has been in recovering more than $20 billion for the government–largely because of the
(more…)

Ready to Talk? 
We’re Here to Help.

We understand the uncertainty that comes with legal issues. Our attorneys are here to guide you every step of the way β€” from the first consultation to courtroom resolution (if that becomes necessary). We offer confidential, no-obligation case evaluations.

πŸ“ž Call us today at (404) 341-5356 or email finchmccranie@finchmccranie.com to schedule 
your consultation.


Secret Link