A Medicaid fraud lawsuit is coming to a close with a $6.4 million deal between a home health care services provider and the Department of Justice. The lawsuit was first brought to the attention of the federal government when an employee chose to report Medicaid fraud as a whistleblower.

The Department of Justice leveled allegations against Home Family Care Inc., a home health care services provider based in Brooklyn, claiming that it falsely and intentionally billed Medicaid for services the company did not even provide.

The company and its president, Alexander Kiselev, will pay $2.57 million of the deal to the federal government, and another $3.85 million to the state of New York. The health care company’s former vice president, Michael Gurevich, has also agreed to a deal to end the allegations against him specifically: $40,000 to the federal government and $60,000 to the state.

On top of these monetary requirements, the deal also requires that Home Family Care Inc., along with both Kiselev and Gurevich, are barred from acting as health care providers in any health care programs funded by the state of New York. These agreements also don’t protect the defendants from potential criminal liability.

It is a continued goal to make sure that health care providers accountable for these kinds of violations, according to U.S. Attorney Richard P. Donoghue. “When health care providers seek and receive Medicaid funds for services that they never provided, they jeopardize the fiscal integrity of a critical health care program,” Donoghue said.

In that vein, it is extremely important to report Medicaid fraud. Whistleblowers are instrumental in bringing information forward that can lead to lawsuits, settlements, fines, and other consequences, helping to make the health care program work.

This lawsuit was originally brought about after a whistleblower chose to report Medicaid fraud they had witnessed in June 2010. The whistleblower lawsuit alleged that Home Family Care had both knowingly and systematically billed Medicaid for home health services that they did not actually provide. In one case, “Home Family billed for the services of an aide who was vacationing on the island of St. Maarten on the dates when Home Family claimed he was providing those services,” according to a statement from New York Attorney General Schneiderman’s office.

Report Medicaid Fraud

Whistleblowers are individuals who report Medicaid fraud and other illegal activities against the government committed by either their current or former employers. Many employees choose to come forward as whistleblowers because they do not feel right about their employer’s actions. A whistleblower lawsuit can be filed while working at the company, but can also be filed after having left.

Further, there are regulations in place to protect whistleblowers from potential retaliation for their actions. The whistleblower is also typically given a substantial reward—often between 15 and 30 percent of the money recovered in the subsequent whistleblower lawsuit.

If you believe you have witnessed Medicare or Medicaid fraud and abuse, or other government fraud by your current or former employer, you may be able to file a whistleblower lawsuit (also known as a qui tam lawsuit) against your employer on behalf of the government.