The Department of Justice announced its intervention in a lawsuit alleging retail pharmacy chain Rite Aid filled hundreds of thousands of prescriptions for medically unnecessary oxycodone and other opioids in violation of multiple federal laws.
Whistleblowers
Posted inEthics & Culture
Ten things I’m excited for at CW National 2023
Ten weeks before Compliance Week National 2023 kicks off May 15 at the JW Marriott in Washington, D.C, CW Editor in Chief Kyle Brasseur shares what he’s looking forward to most at the annual event.
Posted inEthics & Culture
Corporate conformity and ‘blame culture’
Conformity can be a powerful force for good, but the same urge to conform can also lead to a toxic culture with an unhealthy atmosphere for employees and customers alike.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
Cornerstone Healthcare Group to pay $21.6M over false claims
Cornerstone Healthcare Group will pay more than $21.6 million to settle allegations it filed false claims to Medicare by inflating the cost of services, billing for unauthorized services, and other violations initially brought forward by a whistleblower.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
False Claims Act settlements net lower return in FY2022
Penalties assessed for violations of the False Claims Act topped $2.2 billion during fiscal year 2022, less than half the mark the Department of Justice reached the previous year.
Posted inEthics & Culture
Activision Blizzard fined $35M by SEC over workplace harassment disclosures
Activision Blizzard will pay $35 million to resolve Securities and Exchange Commission charges it violated federal securities laws by failing to adequately disclose how its ineffective response to workplace complaints was harming its ability to hire and retain skilled employees.
Posted inRisk Management
JBS accused of greenwashing in SEC whistleblower complaint
Brazilian meat processing company JBS faces accusations of issuing $3.2 billion worth of “misleading and fraudulent” sustainability bonds in a whistleblower complaint filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Posted inAnti-Bribery
J&J unit to pay $9.75M to settle kickback suit
A Johnson & Johnson medical device subsidiary admitted to providing thousands of dollars in equipment as kickbacks to an orthopedic surgeon as part of a $9.75 million settlement reached with the Department of Justice.
Posted inRegulatory Enforcement
BioTelemetry to pay $44.8M over India testing false claims
BioTelemetry and CardioNet agreed to pay more than $44.8 million to settle allegations they violated U.S. federal health laws by improperly billing Medicare and other federal programs for heart monitoring and cardiac test analyses performed by a company in India.
Posted inAccounting & Auditing
Avaya discloses ICFR weaknesses linked to whistleblower logs
Avaya Holdings disclosed its assessment of internal control over financial reporting in its fiscal year 2021 annual report can’t be relied upon, along with acknowledging weaknesses in its ethics and compliance program.