Court Hits Nursing Home Chain Consulate Health Care with $347 Million False Claims Act Fraud Judgment

A recently announced judgment by a district court held a nursing home chain named Consulate Health Care liable for $347 million dollars in total judgment for 446 cited false claims of unlawfully upcoding Medicare claims for patient therapy services. The judgment was entered by Judge Merryday following a jury verdict ...

California’s Most Notable False Claims Act Whistleblower Cases of 2015

In 2015, California accounted for approximately 25% of all healthcare related False Claim Act (FCA) cases.  From the ones unsealed, the average settlement amount recorded is approximately $6 million per case.  With increasing and more frequent monetary awards, relators are increasingly emboldened to continue reportin...

Long Term Care in California, Fertile Ground for Increased Litigation

An alarming trend of elder abuse cases is causing uproar in California’s courts.  A recent case in Sacramento exemplified how one of the causes for elder abuse, understaffing at a Skilled Nursing Facility (“SNF”), led to a resident’s death.  After a civil lawsuit against the SNF was settled for nearly $3 mill...