Bracker & Marcus is pleased to announce a settlement in the Middle District of Tennessee that will return up to $7.8 million to the taxpayers of the United States and the State of Tennessee, and up to $1.4 million dollars to our deserving whistleblower client.
The suit was filed in August 2012, against Nashville Pharmacy Services (“NPS”). NPS specializes in HIV and AIDS-related medications, and beneficiaries of Medicare and TennCare (Tennessee’s Medicaid program) are a significant portion of its revenue.
Our client, who worked as a pharmacy technician, alleged that NPS dispensed prescriptions to deceased patients, automatically refilled prescriptions without authorization, mishandled co-payments and co-payment cards offered by pharmaceutical companies, and retaliated against the relator for trying to stop the fraud.
The settlement, which was negotiated by the Department of Justice and the Tennessee Attorney General’s office, provided for an immediate payment of $500,000 to the United States. Additional payments totaling no less than $1,250,000, but not to exceed $7,300,000, are to be made through the end of 2020. The total will be determined by NPS’s total gross revenue and profit margin. The federal government will receive approximately half of the recovery, with the State of Tennessee receiving approximately one third. The remainder—18%–will be paid to our client for her courageous work.
In the DOJ’s press release, U.S. Attorney David Rivera hailed the settlement, noting “[p]ursuing individuals and corporations who engage in healthcare fraud remains a top priority of the U.S. Attorney’s Office.” Tennessee Attorney General Herbert H. Slatery III echoed this sentiment with his office’s stated commitment to “pursuing those who knowingly take advantage of the [healthcare] system [which] serves as a deterrent and helps protect funding for our most vulnerable citizens.”
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. Bracker & Marcus is extraordinarily proud of our whistleblower client, who was willing to come forward and work with the state and federal governments over three years to bring about this wonderful result!