CORPORATE CRIME REPORTER
Maximus
Gets Deferred Prosecution in False Claims Act Case
21 Corporate Crime Reporter 31, July 23, 2007
Reston, Virginia-based government contractor Maximus Inc. will pay $30.5 million
and enter into a deferred prosecution agreement
to settle a federal False Claims Act case.
The deferred prosecution agreement, civil settlement, and corporate integrity agreement resolve an investigation of Maximus' activities under a contract with the District of Columbia's Child and Family Services Agency (CFSA).
Under the terms of the contract, Maximus helped CFSA submit claims to Medicaid for services provided by the District to children in its foster care program.
The services, known as target case management (TCM) services, are provided by CFSA to assist foster children with their medical, social and educational needs.
Federal officials alleged that Maximus's employees, including a former company vice president, decided to cause CFSA to submit claims to the Medicaid program for TCM services for each child who had been placed in the care of CFSA whether or not services had in fact been provided to those children.
Federal officials had previously recovered $12.15 million from CFSA after a review conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services revealed that CFSA could not support 35 percent of the targeted case management claims it had submitted.
The civil settlement thus brings the United States' total recovery to $42.65 million.
Maximus was represented by DeMaurice Smith, a partner at Patton Boggs in Washington, D.C.
The federal investigation came on the heels of a False Claims Act lawsuit filed by Benjamin Turner, a former division manager at Maximus.
Turner filed the suit under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act and will receive $4.93 million as his share of the settlement.
Under
the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act, private parties can file
an action on behalf of the United States and receive a portion of the proceeds
of a settlement or judgment awarded against a defendant.
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