A qui tam whistleblower lawsuit filed by Veronica N. Arven and the estate of Theodore Arven III in 2019 alleged that the Florida Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Plan and its administrator the Florida Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Association (collectively referred to as NICA) violated the False Claims Act. NICA will pay $51 million to resolve the allegations in a settlement, and the whistleblowers will receive a $12,750,000 award.
The qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act enable private citizens to file lawsuits on behalf of the government if they know of an individual or company defrauding the government. Qui tam whistleblowers are eligible to receive between 15 and 30% of the government’s recovery, if one occurs.
According to the settlement agreement, “[i]n 1988, the Florida Legislature enacted legislation to create NICA, a not-for-profit entity, to stabilize and reduce malpractice insurance premiums for obstetrician medical services in Florida.” The Florida Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Plan is administered by the Association and “provides compensation, irrespective of fault, for certain birth-related neurological injuries.”
Through the plan, “qualified claimants” can get reimbursed for “medically necessary and reasonable” expenses that stem from “birth-related neurological injuries subject to the terms and conditions of the Act, applicable regulations, and guidance documents.” The settlement agreement...
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