Omnicare Whistleblower Lawsuit–$124 Million Settlement

Case name: United States of America, ex rel. Donald Gale v. Omnicare, Inc.
Case type: Whistleblower & Qui Tam
Filed in: [U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio]
Docket: [Case No.: 1:10-CV-0127]

Case Summary

In October 2013, Sanford Heisler Sharp, Relator’s co-counsel, and the United States Government settled a whistleblower action under the False Claims Act (“FCA”) with Omnicare, Inc., the nation’s largest provider of pharmacy services to nursing home patients. As part of the settlement, Omnicare agreed to pay the Government $124.24 million. The Relator, represented by Sanford Heisler Sharp and its co-counsel, received approximately 17% of the settlement, or $17.24 million.

The Complaint alleged that the Cincinnati, Ohio-based Omnicare violated the FCA’s Anti-Kickback Statute, which prohibits offering, paying, soliciting or receiving remuneration to induce referrals of items or services covered by Medicare, Medicaid and other federally funded programs.

The Relator was the General Manager of one of Omnicare’s Ohio pharmacies.

According to the Complaint, Omnicare engaged in a form of kickback scheme known as “swapping, in which Omnicare entered into below-cost contracts to supply prescription medication and other pharmaceutical drugs to skilled nursing facilities, who are reimbursed by Medicare on a flat-fee basis, in exchange for which the facilities referred other patients for whose prescription drugs Omnicare billed the Government at full price.