On 11 May 2023, GCI Communications Corp. (GCI) agreed to pay more than USD 40 million to the US government to settle allegations that it submitted false claims to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) by knowingly inflating its prices in a competitive bidding program regulated by the FCC. The investigation began when a former GCI employee, Robert Taylor, filed a qui tam action against the company under the False Claims Act (FCA) after it allegedly falsely claimed and received funds from the FCC’s Rural Health Care Program (RHC Program). This settlement signals the DOJ’s intent to partner with other government agencies, in this case the FCC, in using the False Claims Act to combat fraud by organizations that service health care providers. It is also one of the DOJ’s largest settlements of allegations under the FCA in 2023.
GCI is a facilities-based telecommunications service provider that offers bandwidth services to health care providers in rural areas of Alaska. The company engaged in a competitive bidding program that is regulated by the FCC. The program provides reduced rates to rural health care providers for telecommunications services used for telemedicine and telehealth. GCI provided these services through the RHC Program1 which offers funding to eligible public or non-profit health care providers for broadband and telecommunications services necessary for the...
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