(Reuters) - The federal government needs a court's sign-off to drop a healthcare fraud lawsuit filed by a whistleblower on its behalf, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Thursday, adding to a split on the issue among the nation's appellate courts.
In its unanimous opinion, the court disagreed with both the D.C. Circuit's stance that the government can drop whistleblower lawsuits at will, and holdings by the 9th and 10th Circuits that it must show a rational basis for doing so. Instead, Circuit Judge Cheryl Ann Krause wrote in the opinion, a district court must consider whether any party would be prejudiced by the dismissal.
The ruling upheld the dismissal of a whistleblower lawsuit by Jesse Polansky, a former employee of the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and later Executive Health Resources Inc, now part of UnitedHealth unit Optum Inc.
Polansky claimed in his 2012 lawsuit in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania that the company falsely certified hospital admissions as medically necessary.
"Although we disagree, we do appreciate the obvious care and attention that went into the panel's opinion," said Polansky's attorney, Daniel Geyser of Haynes & Boone.
Optum, represented by Ethan Posner of Covington & Burling, said in a statement that it was pleased with the ruling.
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