A worker’s whistleblower retaliation lawsuit against a Pennsylvania insurance broker can proceed under state law, according to a recent federal court decision. On Nov. 27, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania ruled that a sales director for Ideal Concepts had made a good-faith effort to report wrongdoing and had standing to sue.
In August 2023, the sales director sued under the federal False Claims Act (FCA), the Pennsylvania Whistleblower Law and common law wrongful discharge. The court dismissed the federal claim, but allowed the two Pennsylvania claims to survive.
“An employee’s investigation of nothing more than their employer’s noncompliance with federal or state regulations cannot form the basis of a viable claim under the FCA and thus cannot sustain an action for retaliation,” the court stated.
Ideal Concepts is an insurance provider based in Allentown, Pa., with more than 400 employees. The company declined to comment on the litigation.
Ideal Concepts sells Medicare and Medicaid plans, for which it receives funding from the state of Pennsylvania. In March 2022, the sales director raised concerns about a company executive allegedly accessing protected health information of customers while outside the United States.
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