Tag: healthcare

Qui Tam: What Is It?

The term qui tam is actually an abbreviated form of the latin phrase “qui tam pro domino rege quam pro seipse,” which means “he who sues for the king as for himself.” Whistleblower is another term used to describe the same type of claim. When an employee gets wind of their employer’s illegal business practices, they have the opportunity to file a qui tam claim against them, and are usually awarded a large portion of the settlement that the government receives.

Whistleblower vs. Qui Tam Claims – Is There a Difference?

new jersey philadelphia qui tam whistleblower lawyers explanationWhistleblower and qui tam claims do essentially the same thing; they allow employees to file lawsuits against their employers for fraud or other illegal practices. Many times, especially in the healthcare industry, companies engage in fraudulent advertising to increase popularity of a product. Pharmaceutical companies are largely guilty of committing this type of fraud. Creating false or untested uses for a certain drug, or offering physicians large amounts of money (kickbacks) to recommend and prescribe certain drugs is very much illegal, and equally as dangerous.

Fraudulent billing is another problem for health programs such as Medicare. It is estimated that close to 10% of all medicare charges are indeed fradulent. Commonly, this fraud occurs in the form of :

  • Billing multiple times for one service
  • Charging for treatment that was never performed
  • Charging for expensive equipment when cheaper equipment was purchased
  • Charging for services that are actually free

Qui Tam Lawyers in New Jersey and Philadelphia

If you currently work for a company that you believe is defrauding it’s employees, customers, and/or government, contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation. The qui tam lawyers at the Mininno Law Office are specifically focused on earning significant compensation for whistelblowers who aim to end their associates illegal and potentially harmful business practices.

You may also call for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia. Let the Mininno Law Office team work hard to earn you the full an fair compensation you deserve.

Nursing Home Abuse Lawyers Fight Scheme

Did you know that nursing home abuse can be lucrative? Insurance companies do! The economy is struggling. You and I, our families and friends, even big companies are struggling to stay alive in a toxic economic climate. The difference is, these insurance companies have corporate shareholders to keep at bay. Their answer? Cash in on nursing home residents’ insurance policies of course!

Nursing home abuse against scheme to make death profit

nursing home abuse attorneys new jersey philadelphia Fight Scheme
Greedy Scrooge McDuck in the 1983 Disney animated feature

Remember when Ebenezer Scrooge died and his house cleaner sold his stuff to cash in? Well, insurance companies and nursing homes are now scheming to do the same to residents. It involves encouraging patients in long term care and assisted institutions to sell their policies for a discounted cash amount. The patients get a pittance of a return – which they can spend at the home for “care.” In exchange, the nursing homes and the insurance carriers get the insurance policies from the patients. These policies are then packaged and sold to Wall Street as future bonds. When the patient dies, Wall Street or the care facilities gets the payout. Talk about a conflict of interest! The longer the patient lives, the greater the cost to the nursing home and the smaller the profit on the policy. Conversly, if the patient dies just after the purchase, the care center reaps the profits.

Nursing home abuse and the “profits over people”

We believe that these institutions should be in the business of caring for our elderly loved ones, not stealing from them. They should not be in the business of leveraging a patient’s health and life as a commodity to be traded on the market. Such practices are depraved. But, this nursing home business IS big business, and as is often the case, “profits over people” is business as usual. Every day, we read about how nursing home abuse and negligence take the place of adequate and compassionate care, only to make an easier and quicker profit. People and their medical care should come first. We understand this and are ready to help you.

Nursing home abuse lawyers in NJ and PA

If you feel that your rights are being violated or that a loved one has not received proper care or may be a victim of nursing home abuse, contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation. The nursing home abuse lawyers at the Mininno Law Office will make sure that your loved ones’ voices are heard and their rights protected. You may also call for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.

Make sure that care is put before profits and advocate for these rights. Let the Mininno Law Office team earn you the compensation you deserve.

Full NY Times article, Wall Street Pursues Profit in Bundles of Life Insurance

Don’t Let Them Fool You – Health Systems can be Held Liable for Incidents at their Hospitals

Here’s an interesting legal tactic for you: In a negligence case brought against the system, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center is apparently asserting that it doesn’t run hospitals, despite describing itself as an “integrated global health enterprise” in its own press releases. – Anne Ziegler, FierceHealthCare.com

Central to what might be the most interesting negligence trial in quite some time is the untimely death of Rose Lee Diggs. Ms. Diggs, an 89 year-old woman was being treated at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Without any hospital staff noticing, and without any proper means to prevent her from doing so, Ms. Diggs got out of her bed, wondered down the hall, up the stairs, and to the roof of the hospital, where she would later be found dead. The suit, which contends that hospital staff delayed in reporting Mrs. Diggs missing and tried to remove evidence from the scene, names both UPMC Health System, and UPMC Presbyterian Shadyside as defendants.

However, in what might be one of the most interesting defense tactics I have seen yet, attorneys for the University of Pittsburgh Health System have asserted that even if there was a wrongdoing in the case of Mrs. Diggs, that the system would not be responsible. Its attorneys have taken the position that each hospital and healthcare facility within its system are independent, not-for-profit corporations which are solely liable for the negligence that occurs at their facility.

Although clever, this argument does not hold under law. In any lawsuit in which the hospital is held liable for malpractice and/or negligence, the Health System which funds, organizes, and operates that facility is also held liable. Of course, the final decision in this case regarding whether or not University of Pittsburgh Health System can be held liable will be up to the Judge hearing the case. Lets just hope she sides with the legal precedent, and common sense.