Amicus Brief: AHA, Others Re: William Beaumont Hospital vs United States of America, Ex Rel. David L. Felten, M.D., PH.D.

Introduction

This case presents an important question that has divided courts of appeals: whether a former employee may bring a False Claims Act retaliation claim against her former employer based on conduct that occurred after her employment ended. This question is relevant to employers of all kinds. But it is especially important to amici’s members.

Hospitals face a disproportionate amount of FCA litigation. The most recent Department of Justice statistics show that healthcare entities are already defendants in roughly two-thirds of all FCA cases. See U.S. Dep’t of Justice, Fraud Statistics-Overview: October 1, 1986-September 30, 2020, https://www.just ice.gov/opa/press-release/file/1354316/download. Many of these cases, however, lack merit. Year after year, the number of FCA cases increases, but the Department of Justice continues to decline participation in the overwhelming majority of them—a clear indicator that these cases never should have been brought in the first place. Given the sheer volume of FCA suits, any erroneous interpretation that expands FCA-related liability is concerning to amici’s members—and should be to this Court as well. View the entire amicus brief below.