In an article for Law360 Healthcare Authority, Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Matt Curley discussed the marked rise in False Claims Act (FCA) whistleblower lawsuits, as recently announced by the U.S. Department of Justice, and what that might mean for future FCA litigation.
According to Matt, the rise in FCA claims may be attributed to a number of factors, including the possibility that “more individuals may view themselves as joining the fight, so to speak, in attempting to root out fraud, waste and abuse in our institutions, given recent headlines.”
In speaking more about the rise in case numbers, Matt noted “It’s very important to remember that more cases do not necessarily mean more meritorious cases or more high-dollar settlements. If anything, recent trends have shown that civil fraud recoveries have been stagnant for several years, and recoveries last fiscal year were the fourth-lowest since 2010.”
The full article, “FCA Claims Surge As Whistleblowers Eye Pandemic Spending,” was published by Law360 Healthcare Authority on February 18 and is available online (subscription required). The Law360 article followed our recent analysis of DOJ’s announcement of civil fraud recoveries authored by Matt Curley and John Eason in the Inside the False Claims Act blog, entitled DOJ Releases Annual Civil Fraud Recovery Statistics and Results…Our Look Behind the Numbers.