Last month, a federal court ruled that a drug or device maker remains liable under the False Claims Act even when a pharmacy or hospital was unaware that a kickback was made to a doctor to induce the sale of a product for which reimbursement was sought from Medicare and Medicaid. The decision was seen as a game changer, because dismissing whistleblower lawsuits would likely become more difficult. Until then, courts had ruled the False Claims Act could not have been violated if a pharmacy does not know that a prescription was only written because a drugmaker gave a kickback to a doctor. Whistleblowers have argued, however, that a violation occurs once reimbursement is sought from Medicaid or Medicare. But the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit disagreed.
