The Qui Tam Action Against CVS - Settlement Agreement
The qui tam lawsuit alleges that CVS’s ranitidine switching violated federal and state false claims acts. False claims acts prohibit submitting false or fraudulent claims to the government. Here, the United States, individual states and Medicaid fraud whistleblower Lisitza alleged that CVS violated federal and state false claims acts by claiming Medicaid reimbursements for ranitidine capsules when the lower-priced ranitidine tablets should have been provided. False claims acts are designed to deter fraud against the government, and provide substantial remedies against those who lie, cheat and steal from the public treasury. The government can collect up to three times the amount it was defrauded in addition to civil penalties of $5,500 to $11,000 per false claim. Major recoveries have been achieved through the incentives and protections designed to encourage qui tam whistleblowers to come forward with information about fraud against the government. Qui tam whistleblowers can receive a substantial percentage of the recovery, ranging from 15 to 25 percent when the government pursues the case with the whistleblower. Pharmacists like the relator in this case have brought numerous successful actions, resulting in hundreds of millions of dollars in recoveries of government payments.
