A federal judge rebuked the U.S. Department of Justice in its bid to dismiss nearly a dozen lawsuits alleging drug makers devised schemes in which nurses were used illegally to promote their medicines and boost prescriptions, an arrangement that purportedly violated federal kickback laws.
The decision is a setback to the federal government as it attempts to implement a new policy for dismissing whistleblower lawsuits when declining to intervene, or join the case. A Justice Department memo issued last year directed its attorneys to consider moving to dismiss lawsuits if they appear deficient or following an investigation of claims made by the whistleblower.
As noted previously, the lawsuits contend the drug makers hired third-party contractors to deploy nurses, either by phone or in patient homes, to ensure that prescriptions are refilled. The companies also allegedly provided kickbacks to doctors in the form of free insurance-processing assistance, medical practice management software, and marketing assistance to persuade them to prescribe their drugs.
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