Hundreds of Health Care Fraud Cases in Limbo, According to USDOJ
Stopping health care fraud is by no means an easy task. New figures released by the U.S. Department of Justice, however, reveal hundreds of instances where whistleblowers have reported health care fraud, but the U.S. Government has let the cases languish for months or even years while deciding whether to get involved. In effect, the government has been tipped off on potential fraud, but has not taken action.
According to numbers released from the U.S. Department of Justice (USDOJ) to Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), there are currently 985 health care-related qui tam/False Claims Act cases pending a decision from the USDOJ on whether or not to intervene. Under the federal False Claims Act, a private individual who is aware of fraud against the government can file a whistleblower or "qui tam" lawsuit against the defendants. Once the case is filed, the government must make a decision to intervene. However, as noted by Grassley, such cases often sit stagnant for months or even years while the government makes an intervention decision. Specifically, USDOJ data shows that on average, it takes the Department of Justice 12.3 months to decide whether to intervene on a case.
“These cases were brought forward by patriotic individuals who are sticking their necks out to do what’s right. We can’t just let these whistleblowers sit in limbo for years while the federal bureaucracy takes its time deciding what to do,” Grassley said in a statement Thursday. “I want to know what the Justice Department needs in order to speed up these decisions. People who put everything on the line to speak up when they think there’s fraud against the taxpayers can’t live their lives this way.”
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