False Claims Act: State Statutes

In 2006, Congress passed a law requiring states to have their own False Claims Act in order to achieve the maximum reimbursement from the federal government for state Medicaid programs. This new law has accelerated the trend of states enacting their own False Claims Acts. Listed below are the states with their own False Claims Act.

The existence of state statutes raises a number of important issues that should be analyzed by Relators’ counsel. First, a fraud may apply to state or municipal funds but not to federal funds. In that case you may have a False Claims case under your applicable state statute but not the federal False Claims Act.

Second, the fraud may apply to both federal and state funds, in which case you may be entitled to recover under both the federal False Claims Act and the applicable state False Claims Act. Common examples of such schemes are Medicaid fraud cases. Since the Medicaid system is funded by both the federal and state governments, any such scheme would be actionable under the federal False Claims Act and the applicable state False Claims Act.

"The amount of your recovery could be substantially increased by properly persuing applicable state False Claims Act actions."

The state statues can provide an important means of recovery. For instance, in Medicaid fraud cases, the federal government takes the position that, under the False Claims Act, the Relator is not entitled to a reward based upon any recovery to the state government. Since the Medicaid programs are often funded roughly 50% by the federal government and 50% by the state government, the recovery to a Relator can be substantially higher if the relator vigorously pursues claims under both the federal ands state False Claims Act.

Even if your state does not have a False Claims Act, you should consult your attorney about the possibility of other state False Claims Acts applying to the scheme you are alleging. Schemes often operate throughout more than one state. The amount of your recovery could be substantially increased by properly persuing applicable state False Claims Act actions.

Since the state False Claims Acts are not identical, it is important to retain an attorney familiar with the state statutes. The scope of the state False Claims Acts can vary from state to state.

Below are links to texts of some state statutes: