Akin Gump Lawyers Pen Law360 Article on DOJ’s Pandemic-Related Enforcement Priorities

Law360 has published the article “Prepare For DOJ’s Pandemic-Related Enforcement Priorities,” written by Akin Gump partners Elizabeth Scott and Angela Styles and senior counsel Caroline Wolverton. The article, adapted from an Akin Gump client alert, recounts recent remarks by a top Justice Department official pertaining to the government’s focus on “civil enforcement authority on fraud and illegal actions relating to COVID-19,” including the CARES Act stimulus programs and consumer products marketed for use in addressing the virus.

Among the areas of enforcement pertaining to COVID-19 that the authors say are being prioritized are False Claims Act enforcement and consumer protection. That said, they note that the DOJ will continue to pursue fraud in other areas, including “the opioid crisis, electronic health records, Medicare Advantage, nursing home mistreatment, fraud on the elderly and dietary supplements.” In addition, “DOJ lawyers will begin asking relators a series of questions regarding the role of third-party litigation funders in their cases.”

The authors conclude with a look at how companies can best mitigate the risk of liability. Where government rules are unclear, they suggest that companies “form a contemporaneous, reasonable understanding of what is required, document that understanding and the rationale for it, and communicate their understanding to the government if the issue arises.”

To read the article in its entirety, please click here.