A federal jury in San Antonio, Texas, this morning found in favor of three whistleblowers represented by Burlingame-based Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, LLP (“CPM”), in a case brought under the False Claims Act. The jury entered a verdict that will result in a damages award of $8.1 million after mandatory tripling under the False Claims Act. Additionally, the jury determined the defendant submitted over 7,000 false claims to the United States Medicare program. Each of those false claims will be subject to civil monetary penalties of over $11,000.
The defendant in the case is Peripheral Vascular Associates (“PVA”), a San Antonio-based physician group specializing in peripheral vascular disease. CPM’s lawsuit alleged that the group overcharged taxpayers when it routinely billed Medicare for ultrasound services that were not provided.