Pennsylvania’s House of Representatives recently passed HB 1697, a bill that would create a state False Claims Act (FCA) as a counterpart to the well-known federal FCA. The bill is now with the Pennsylvania Senate, which will decide whether this bill is sent to Gov. Shapiro’s desk to sign.
The Pennsylvania Senate should pass the state FCA as it will provide one of the most impactful mechanisms to combat fraud against the Commonwealth and increase funds received from federal government recoveries stemming from Medicaid fraud.
At its core, state and federal FCA laws encourage citizens to report fraud by offering a reward if money is recovered due to the information they provide. This bounty program significantly increases the number of people willing to come forward to blow the whistle on fraud and, therefore, also increases the amount of funds recovered by state and federal law enforcement.
To provide some background, the federal FCA allows for qui tam lawsuits where whistleblowers, referred to as relators, can bring a lawsuit in the federal government’s name against entities and individuals that have fraudulently obtained federal funds. FCA cases are filed under seal and typically remain sealed until law enforcement completes its investigation. The whistleblower is entitled to 15 to 30 percent of any funds recovered by the federal government as a result of the information they provide. The law also protects workers from retaliation for reporting fraudulent conduct.
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