Fraud By The Numbers Series

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 30

    Over the last thirty days, Fraud By The Numbers has spotlighted fraud schemes targeting government dollars and the financial markets. These 30 blog posts have evidenced the fraud-fighting impact of whistleblowers and whistleblower reward programs. The numbers reveal the truth about fraud. Indeed, some trends have emerged. But what trend stands out? The answer: Relatively…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 29

    Fiscal Year 2022 saw the most new cases filed under the False Claims Act in the Law’s modern history. Does the DOJ have the resources to handle the job? One aspect of the Department of Justice’s efforts to fight fraud stands out as being far more active in recent years. DOJ is now initiating more…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 28

    Opponents of the False Claims Act (FCA) and other whistleblower programs often deride whistleblowers as disgruntled employees or those just looking to make a buck, but the fact is that whistleblowers uncovering fraud on the government and financial markets do not stand to profit anywhere near as much as the corporations behind the fraud schemes…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 27

    In his recent dissent in U.S. ex rel. Polansky v. Executive Health Resources, Justice Clarence Thomas suggested that qui tam actions, allowing private individuals to represent the government in litigation, might be unconstitutional. Seizing upon Justice Thomas’ speculation, False Claims Act defendants have intensified constitutional challenges to the qui tam provisions even though the issue…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 26

    In the thirty years from 1993 through 2022, False Claims Act cases filed by whistleblowers have returned $50.1 billion to the Treasury.[1] That’s great news, but you probably wonder: what could the Government do with that money? In fact, $50 billion can do a lot, and there are a few things that have received bi-partisan…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 25

    A common refrain we hear from opponents of the False Claims Act (FCA) is that there are just too many FCA lawsuits, and that whistleblowers are running around filing frivolous suits just to vex defendants. However, a look at the numbers shows how far from true that is. Qui tam relators and their counsel only…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 24

    Earlier this year, the Internal Revenue Service Whistleblower Office released its Annual Report with an encouraging word from the program’s director. In the report, Director Hinman reiterated the IRS’s support for whistleblowers, and said that the agency “uses increasingly sophisticated data analytics and other methods to detect non-compliance with tax laws, but we can’t find…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 23

    We see whistleblowers in the news every day, like Michael Bawduniak (who blew the whistle on Biogen’s kickback schemes) and Frances Haugen (who shared Facebook’s secrets with the world). But these high-profile whistleblowers are the exception, not the rule, as are both the costs and rewards these publicly lauded figures incur. The DOJ doesn’t provide…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 22

    Each year the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) prepares a report of what the government bought the year before, the “Snapshot of Government-Wide Contracting.”  It summarizes data reported to the Federal Procurement Data System on obligations made via “procurement contracts.”[1]  According to the GAO, the federal government contracted for $694 Billion in services and products in…

  • Fraud By The Numbers 2023 – Sept. 21

    Public pharmaceutical companies in the US regularly report out-sized revenues, but they face growing criticism for the very unpublic way they arrive at their drug prices. According to a survey of 1,000 American consumers, “77% believe that the consumer prices of drugs are unreasonably high,” and nearly the same number – 73% – said their…