Trinh Ngoc Pham v. The Church for the Healthy Self, A/K/A CHS Trust, et al. is a putative class action filed in the Superior Court of California seeking damages related to a church-based investment scheme propped up by Ponzi-type payments.
Plaintiff is an individual who invested into the defendants’ church under the impression that the…
In U.S. ex rel. Sonyika v. ApolloMD, Inc. et al., 2021 WL 1222379 (N.D. Ga. Mar. 31, 2021), a Georgia federal court allowed a relator’s Amended Complaint alleging a fraudulent scheme involving improper billing for services rendered by Advanced Professional Practitioners (APP) in violation of the False Claims Act (FCA) and the Georgia-equivalent to proceed. The court found that the relator’s personal experience as a participant in the alleged billing scheme provided adequate indicia of reliability with respect to his “presentment claim” and his “use claim” under the FCA and claim under the Georgia State False Medicaid Claims Act that the defendants caused increase reimbursement for APP services in emergency rooms than should have been billed. On the other hand, the court dismissed claims related to violation of the AKS and non-Georgia false claims statutes.
McGuireWoods has long been an avid supporter of the advancement of professional women. As part of our initiative seeking to expand the leadership of women in private equity, we are continuing our series of profiling women leaders in private equity. We are hopeful that this series will serve to inspire other women to pursue their…
WindRose Health Investors has announced it has completed the sale of myNEXUS to health benefits company Anthem.
myNEXUS, based in Brentwood, Tenn., is a post-acute benefits management company. The company states that it delivers integrated clinical support services for Medicare Advantage members in 20 states.
WindRose, based in New York, pursues control equity…
On April 27, 2021, President Biden signed an Executive Order (EO) requiring federal contractors performing service, construction or concession contracts to pay a $15 minimum wage to those employees who are working on such contracts.
As noted in the White House Fact Sheet, this EO will build on Executive Order 13658 (signed in February 2014),…
RELATED UPDATE: CMS Streamlines Stark Law Self-Disclosures (March 8, 2023)
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced 2020 settlements concerning past violation or potential violations of the physician self-referral law (the Stark Law) and the number and value of such settlements have returned to the pre‑2019 trends. The 2020 settlements based on voluntary submissions submitted several years ago mark an increase from 2019’s report when CMS announced the lowest aggregate settlement dollars collected since the Stark Law disclosure’s first year in 2011. We speculated last year that such decrease could continue in 2020 as the agency’s attention focused on the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19). That said, as shown on the first chart below, CMS doubled its 2019 settlement numbers, and, as shown on the second chart, announced the greatest aggregate settlement dollars collected since reaching aggregate value that peaked in 2016.
“Pleading the Fifth” is one of the most commonly known phrases in the U.S. legal system, and the right against self-incrimination is one of the Constitution’s most meaningful protections. That said, the costs and risks of exercising that right in the corporate fraud context may outweigh the benefits.
To learn about some of the limits…
On April 14, 2021, the United States Department of Labor (the “DOL”) issued for the first time guidance to retirement plan sponsors, fiduciaries, record keepers, service providers and plan participants guidance on cybersecurity issues. The DOL’s press release includes three pieces of guidance, including: (1) Tips for Hiring Service Providers; (2) Cybersecurity Program Best Practices; and (3) Online Security Tips.
The Employee Benefits Security Administration, a sub-agency of the DOL (the “EBSA”) long ago stated that addressing cybersecurity has been on the agency’s “to do” list and even published a report in 2016 reflecting the need for such guidance, which we previously covered here.
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”), includes fiduciary standards that require a retirement plan to be administered in accordance with a standard of care for a prudent person who is familiar with such matters. Common sense dictates that ERISA fiduciaries administer their plans in accordance with industry standards for cybersecurity, safeguard plan assets and ensure that appropriate controls are in place to avoid financial losses to plans that may result from a cybersecurity breach. However, the legal issues concerning who is responsible (plan participant, plan sponsor or record keeper) remain open questions in many jurisdictions.
In a recent opinion from the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the court analyzed several alleged points of error from a criminal jury trial about a healthcare kickback scheme. See United States v. Trumbo, No. 20-1393, __ F. App’x __, 2021 WL 957337 (6th Cir. March 15, 2021). The opinion is significant because it gives insight into how an appellate court will approach contested issues on appeal after a rare criminal jury trial.
The Carlyle Group has announced it has agreed to acquire Unchained Labs for $435 million.
Unchained Labs, based in Pleasanton, Calif., is a producer of life sciences tools. Founded in 2015, the company focuses on solving problems for biologics and gene therapy researchers.
The Carlyle Group, with its U.S. headquarters in Washington, D.C.,…
