Meyer

FACTS AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY

In 2000, relators Meyer, Szerlip, and Vicki Weatherford sued appellees, asserting claims under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. §§ 3729-3733 (“the Act”). Meyer and Szerlip were psychiatric nurses employed by Sum- mit; Weatherford was employed by Horizon as the “Senior Bridges” program director. The Senior Bridges program was a geropsychiatric unit managed by Horizon at a facility owned by Summit.

The gravamen of relators’ allegations assert that appellees fraudulently billed Medicare for patient services. Specifically, relators contend that appellees admitted patients to the Senior Bridges program despite knowing that those patients, who suffered from dementia, could not benefit from the program. Appellees received a considerably larger daily Medicare reim- bursement for a patient in the Senior Bridges program ($1,830) than for a patient in the regular “medical/surgical unit” ($1,085).

After a long delay in its decision, the government in May 2004 declined to intervene. Relators then filed their First 5804 MEYER v. HORIZON HEALTH CORP. Amended Complaint (“FAC”) against appellees in September 2004. Appellees moved…