It’s really amazing how people think they can get away with fraud, especially so when the siphoned money can amount to millions of dollars. Such is the case when it comes to Medicaid. Experts estimate that up to 10 percent of the $6.5 billion Washington spends on Medicaid every year is stolen by people who succeed – even temporarily – in defrauding the US government.

One example is a when a medical device companies bills Medicaid far more than the actual costs of their equipment. In Seattle, a wheelchair company collected $600,000 more than it was entitled to by overbilling Medicaid. The owner of that company, however, may have to pay the piper; he is facing criminal charges.

Whistleblowers are an important safeguard to the system because, obviously, government law enforcement can’t be everywhere, all the time. Instead, people who pay attention and report fraudulent behavior against the government may be entitled to a portion of the proceeds collected by the government – thanks to the False Claims Act. The amount a whistleblower can receive in a Medicaid fraud case can be up to 30 percent of the proceeds. That’s not chump change when you consider the high stakes fraud being committed against the US government.

If you or someone you know has information that could lead to a whistleblowing case, the first thing you need to do is contact a skilled lawyer with experience in qui tam cases. Contact Begelman & Orlow, P. C. today for sound legal advice with your whistleblowing claim.