Our Experience
If you or your healthcare company is facing allegations of fraud, you need an experienced law firm to represent you during these troubling and crucial moments. Not only are the sanctions for committing healthcare fraud extremely steep – even civil cases can impose treble damages, or three times what was allegedly defrauded – but the process of defending against the accusations is often far from simple.
The healthcare fraud defense lawyers at the national law firm Oberheiden P.C. have extensive experience in representing both individuals and companies against civil and criminal allegations of healthcare fraud. Our thorough and intimate understanding of healthcare law and the complicated maze that is the United States healthcare system gives us the ability to provide unparalleled legal advice that insulates you or your company from civil and criminal liability.
Countless clients have benefited from our defensive strategies.
Put our highly experienced team on your side
Dr. Nick Oberheiden
Founder
Attorney-at-Law
John W. Sellers
Former Senior Trial Attorney
U.S. Department of Justice
Local Counsel
Joanne Fine DeLena
Former Assistant U.S. Attorney
Local Counsel
Joe Brown
Former U.S. Attorney & Former District Attorney
Local Trial & Defense Counsel
Amanda Marshall
Former U.S. Attorney
Local Counsel
Aaron L. Wiley
Former Federal Prosecutor
Local Counsel
Roger Bach
Former Special Agent (OIG)
Michael Koslow
Former Supervisory Special Agent (FBI)
Chris Quick
Former Special Agent (FBI & IRS-CI)
Kevin M. Sheridan
Former Special Agent (FBI)
Ray Yuen
Former Supervisory Special Agent (FBI)
Dennis A. Wichern
Former Special Agent-in-Charge (DEA)
Decades Spent Defending Clients from Allegations of Healthcare Fraud
The lawyers at Oberheiden P.C. have spent decades defending clients across the country from a wide variety of allegations related to healthcare fraud. Just a few of the most common have been for:
- Billing fraud
- Drug diversion
- Home health agency (HHA) fraud
- Hospice care fraud
- Laboratory fraud
- Medicare fraud
- Pharmaceutical fraud
- Psychologist and psychiatrist fraud
- Tricare fraud
Depending on the facts of the case, these allegations can be pursued as a civil allegation or as a criminal charge. Some of the most common federal laws that get invoked in healthcare fraud allegations are:
- 18 U.S.C. § 1347, which covers healthcare fraud in general
- 18 U.S.C. § 1349, which forbids conspiring to commit healthcare fraud
- 31 U.S.C. § 3729 et seq., also known as the False Claims Act (FCA), which makes it unlawful to submit false claims for reimbursement against a government source of funding, like Medicare or Medicaid
- 42 U.S.C. § 1395nn or the Physician Self-Referral Law, also known as the Stark Law, which forbids healthcare professionals from referring patients to other healthcare providers in which the referring professional has a financial stake or interest
- 42 U.S.C. § 1320a-7b, or the Anti-Kickback Law, which prohibits taking kickbacks for referrals or business
- 18 U.S.C. § 1028 and 18 U.S.C. § 1028A, which cover identity theft and aggravated identity theft, respectively
These are serious federal laws that come with huge penalties, regardless of whether they come in the form of a criminal conviction or a civil judgment. Worse, cases that invoke these laws frequently start out as something far smaller. Over decades of representing defendants against healthcare fraud allegations, we have frequently dealt with cases that escalated from the following seemingly innocuous scenarios:
- Medicaid audits
- Laboratory audits
- Medicare audits, including:
- Medical malpractice lawsuits
- Qui tam lawsuits
- Wrongful death lawsuits
- Civil investigative demands (CIDs)
- Drug diversion investigations
- Investigations by the Department of Labor (DOL)
- Investigations by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Subpoenas from the Office of Inspector General (OIG)
- Recovery audit contractor (RAC) audits
- Qlarant investigations and audits
- Zone program integrity contractor (ZPIC) audits
Getting effective legal representation at the earliest stage possible is essential for overcoming preliminary suspicions of healthcare fraud before they can grow into something that jeopardizes you or your company.
Oberheiden P.C.’s Attorneys are All Senior Status
At Oberheiden P.C., we strongly believe that the best way to help our clients during these fraught investigations and cases is to provide them with legal representation from only the most experienced attorneys available. That is why we do not employ junior associates, paralegals, or legal secretaries at our firm.
When you call Oberheiden P.C. to handle your legal defense against allegations of healthcare fraud, the first person that you will speak with is a defense lawyer who has years of experience handling cases just like your own. Throughout your legal representation, that will not change. You will only deal with senior attorneys at our law firm.
Over years in the healthcare fraud defense field, we have found that this is the best way to vigorously advocate for our clients, fully understand their needs and concerns, and give them the peace of mind that comes with knowing that everything is being done to protect them from legal liability.
A National Law Firm With Local Counsel You Can Trust
Even better, you have access to those senior lawyers wherever you are. Oberheiden P.C. is a national law firm that is headquartered in Texas, but that relies on local counsel that we use and fully trust in nearly all states and jurisdictions in the United States. We have extensively vetted the senior lawyers in our office closest to you and they have our complete confidence.
Investigators With Backgrounds in Healthcare Fraud Cases
To help our senior lawyers gather the facts in your particular case, we have tapped into the extensive experience of a roster of senior investigators, the vast majority of whom have decades of experience of their own in the very same law enforcement agencies that are likely to be prosecuting your case. Many of them are retired agents, with long and impressive track records, from the following government agencies:
- Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
- Department of Justice (DOJ)
- Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG)
- Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
Their insider experience prosecuting these cases makes them an invaluable resource in defending against them.
Experience Representing Clients at All Junctures in a Case
Our senior lawyers and experienced investigators have been called on to represent healthcare fraud defendants and suspects at all junctures of a case. In many instances, we have been called on to craft compliance policies for healthcare providers so they never come under the scrutiny of law enforcement agents. In others, we have inherited cases where fraud defendants have been tried and convicted and want to either appeal their conviction or want more effective legal representation for the sentencing process.
It is never too early and never too late to call the healthcare fraud defense lawyers at Oberheiden P.C. at (888) 680-1745 or to contact them online and get an experienced legal defense team at your side.
