In this episode I visit with Andrew Beato from the law firm of Stein Mitchell Beato & Missner LLP. We discuss the firm’s recent False Claims Act settlement with Walgreen on behalf of firm client Marc Baker. Walgreens agreed to pay $60 million to settle allegations that it knowingly overcharged government healthcare plans such as Medicaid for prescription drugs. With this settlement, Walgreens resolved allegations that the company defrauded the U.S. government and 39 states by submitting false and inflated prices for prescription drugs to increase its government reimbursements. The settlement is one of the largest of its kind against a retail pharmacy under the qui tam whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act. Some of the highlights of the podcast include:
- The practice at Stein Mitchell Beato & Missner LLP;
- What are qui tam whistleblower protection under the FCA;
- The allegations and resolution of the lawsuit against Walgreens.
- Why are qui tam actions to powerful?
- How do qui tam actions benefit the individual, the government and society as a whole?
- How whistleblowers in such actions are in a private-public partnership to prevent government fraud, waste and abuse?
Resources
Stein Mitchell Beato & Missner LLP website
Andrew Beato LinkedIn profile
Case Name: United States ex rel. Marc D. Baker v. Walgreen, Co., 12 Civ. 0300 (JPO) (S.D.N.Y.).
