On Monday February 22, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to grant
certiorari in
CareAlternatives v. United States (
CareAlternatives), a case on appeal from the Third Circuit that could have assessed the issue of “objective falsity” under the federal False Claims Act (FCA). The Supreme Court’s rejection leaves standing the split among Circuit Courts on whether the government or a whistleblower (Relator) must prove that a claim is objectively false to bring a successful FCA claim. This means that health care providers potentially face differing levels of FCA risk depending on the jurisdiction where an FCA case is brought.
As we have previously discussed, federal courts are split on whether Relators or the government must prove objective falsity. Both