Affirmative Civil Enforcement

Affirmative Civil Enforcement AUSAs handle cases brought under the False Claims Act, drug diversion statutes, Fraud Injunction Statute and other laws designed to combat and punish corporations and individuals who defraud the government. The False Claims Act empowers private citizens with knowledge of fraud to present those claims to the U.S. If a judgment is entered in favor of the U.S. or the case is settled and monies are recovered by the U.S. and the State of Texas, the private citizen is entitled to share in any recovery.

Our Affirmative Civil Enforcement team has recovered $161.8 million in settlements from July 1, 2014, through June 30, 2016.

Representative recoveries include:

• One Step Diagnostic Inc., all independent diagnostic testing centers, paid physicians for referrals for imaging studies in violation of the Stark Law, the Anti-Kickback Statute and the False Claim Act. The United States substantiated the allegations and the qui tam settled for $1,200,000.

• Defendant Rahul Dhawan operated six independent diagnostic testing facilities, which he enrolled as physician practices, and billed all services at all six facilities using one physician’s NPI. That physician was not present at any of the facilities and did not supervise any of the tests. This qui tam settled for $1,457,686.

• Our office investigated Dr. Benson Huang, a pulmonologist in Laredo, for up-coding critical care codes. Huang was up-coding critical care services that he provided at Laredo Medical Center. The case settled for $4,378,812.

• A cardiology practice group alleged that Citizens Medical Center defrauded Medicare/Medicaid by filing false claims through illegal kickbacks to physicians in return for in-patient referrals.

  The USAO and DOJ Civil Division presented the government’s findings to the defendants and the parties entered into a settlement agreement, with the defendants paying the United States $21,750,000.