On Monday, April 6, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that MiMedx Group Inc. (MiMedx or the company), an advanced wound care and biologics company, agreed to pay $6.5 million to resolve allegations that it overcharged the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) by knowingly submitting false statements and disclosures regarding inflated prices forRead More
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced it has taken its first action in federal court to combat fraud related to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The heightened fraud enforcement establishes a new precedent for government contractors, in particular, to take extra steps to ensure robust compliance measures are in place, to review supply chain agreements,Read More
On December 12, 2019, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that a former civilian employee of the U.S. Army is being prosecuted by the DOJ’s Criminal Division’s Fraud Section. The former employee, Ephraim Garcia, worked in the Army’s Directorate of Public Works, where his job duties related to the solicitation, award and management of governmentRead More
The recent guilty plea of a furniture company sales executive provides a timely reminder that contractors continue to engage in procurement shenanigans–and continue to get caught. In such circumstances, crime definitely does not pay. On June 10, 2019, the Department of Justice announced that Steven Anstine of Overland Park, Kansas, pled guilty in federal DistrictRead More
As most federal government contractors know, the False Claims Act (“FCA”), 31 U.S.C. §§ 3729–33, can be a trap for the unscrupulous. The penalties associated with FCA violations can be steep, and the myriad other consequences (including debarment) can create an existential crisis. Government contractors would do well to pay attention to the FCA’s latest developments.Read More
