Pathway Genomics Corporation Qui Tam Action – $4.1 Million Settlement
Case name: United States of America ex rel. Gipson v. Pathway Genomics Corp.
Case type: Whistleblower and Qui Tam
Filed in: [U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California]
Docket: [Case No. 3:14-cv-01919]
Case Summary
In December 2015, Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight and the U.S. Government settled a whistleblower action under the False Claims Act (“FCA”) and the Anti-Kickback Statute with San Diego-based genetic testing giant Pathway Genomics Corporation (“Pathway”).
As part of the settlement, Pathway agreed to pay the U.S. Government, 28 states and the District of Columbia $4.1 million. The Relator, who was represented by Sanford Heisler Sharp McKnight and Aashish Y. Desai of the Desai Law Firm, P.C., received a portion of the settlement.
The case alleged that Pathway, which provides lab-based genetic screening tests for a variety of conditions, violated its government contracts by offering physicians and medical groups a reimbursement program that induced and rewarded them for referring their patients to Pathway.
The states involved in the settlement included: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, as well as the District of Columbia.
Procedural History
News Coverage
- Pathway Genomics To Pay $4M In FCA Settlement, Law360, January 4, 2016
- San Diego Lab Pays Out $4M to Resolve Allegations of Medical Kickbacks, Times of San Diego, December 30, 2015
- San Diego-based medical lab pays $4M over kickback claims, Fox 5 (San Diego), December 30, 2015
Attorneys Involved in the Case
David Sanford
Chairman
H. Vincent McKnight Jr.
Co-Vice Chairman
John McKnight
Washington, DC Partner
Grant Morris
Of Counsel