Law360 Quotes Robert Salcido on Impact of Universal Health Services v. Escobar

For its article “Attys Dish On Escobar's FCA Impact One Year Later,” Law360 quoted practitioners, among them Akin Gump health care and life sciences partner Robert Salcido, on new ways in which the SCOTUS decision has been applied.

Salcido, whose practice focuses on False Claims Act and qui tam defense, said that Escobar will have a transformative effect on FCA law in defining its appropriate scope and application. He noted, “As to scope, the Supreme Court reaffirmed that the FCA is not an 'all-purpose anti-fraud statute' meant to punish 'garden-variety breaches of contract or regulatory violations.' As to application, the Supreme Court narrowed the FCA’s materiality standard some courts applied by finding that courts should not simply look at what the relevant government decision-makers would decide at the time in which the claim is submitted, but also at how the government reacted after the claim was submitted, such as, whether the government, after review, continued to pay claims or renewed a contract, which is very strong evidence that the claim is not material.”