Jed Cain
Partner
Massachusetts-based pharmaceutical company Biogen will pay $900 million to settle claims that they paid kickbacks to physicians as an incentive to prescribe their drugs over others. Former Biogen employee Michael Bawduniak, who filed a lawsuit in 2012 against his employer for its alleged illegal payments, will receive $266 million – the largest whistleblower award in history – for following through on the decade-long case.
Biogen agreed to the settlement the day before it was scheduled to appear in court.
Bawduniak filed his whistleblower lawsuit under the False Claims Act, enacted in 1863 to prohibit the intentional filing of a false claim against a federal program. He alleged that Biogen enticed doctors to prescribe its multiple sclerosis drugs over its competitors with various perks, including consulting and speaking fees and lavish meals, that resulted in a huge sales increase.
According to the lawsuit, Biogen’s actions defrauded Medicare and Medicaid in violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute.
Biogen maintains it did nothing wrong and only agreed to the settlement to “remain focused on our patients and strategic priorities.”
The record award highlights the importance of whistleblowers in protecting federal healthcare programs against those who would abuse them for personal profit.
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