WASHINGTON – The Justice Department has collected a record $3 billion in the last year in pursuing cases of health care fraud and other false claims against the government.
Assistant Attorney General Tony West says health care fraud, an enforcement priority for the Obama administration, accounted for $2.5 billion in civil settlements and judgments in the last fiscal year, which ended in September.
The government collected $1.6 billion in settlements with pharmaceutical and medical device companies in cases alleging fraud against Medicare and other federal health insurance programs. This total includes $669 million in Justice's record settlement with Pfizer Inc., which was accused of marketing drugs for uses not approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
