Taking Center Stage – Washington State’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, the False Claims Act and Celgene

On July 26, 2017, the Washington State Attorney General (“AG”) Bob Ferguson (“Ferguson”) announced one of the State’s largest recoveries against the Pharmaceutical Company Celgene (“Celgene”) for allegations involving violations of the Medicaid False Claims Act, in particulars claims related to the company’s off-label marketing, fraudulent billing and providing kickbacks to doctors. The Washington State AG recovery represents a pivotal point in life science compliance, where State AGs similar to Seattle, are actively seeking recoveries against companies that violate state and federal Medicare programs.

The pharmaceutical company Celgene, headquartered in Summit, New Jersey, describes itself as an “integrated global biopharmaceutical company engaged primarily in the discovery, development and commercialization of innovative therapies for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases through next-generation solutions in protein homeostasis, immuno-oncology, epigenetics, immunology and neuroinflammation.”

In a significant settlement involving twenty-eight states, including Washington, Celgene agreed to pay $280 million to settle a variety of claims including off-label promotion, fraudulent billing and the provision of kickbacks to doctors. The case involved two products: Revlimid and Thalomid.