Households in Iowa are trimming back spending and finding ways to save money. Triggered by meltdowns on Wall Street, job losses, housing foreclosures and tight credit, the crisis in consumer confidence is putting even more pressure on the U.S. economy.
In the year ahead, the White House and U.S. Congress will shoulder high expectations to get the economy back on the right track. Families worry about job security and college tuition. Retirees worry about running out of savings. The uninsured worry about catastrophic illness and medical bills. Employers worry about meeting payroll if service orders decline. Retailers worry about falling sales receipts if customers stay home. Manufacturers worry about inventory collecting dust instead of bringing in revenue.
It will take bipartisan leadership in Washington and sacrifice among the corporate and financial elite who are turning to the Federal Treasury for help to restore prosperity to the economy. When Congress approved a financial rescue package, I fought for limits on excessive executive compensation. And most recently, as automobile makers look to Washington for a bailout, I’m reminding the CEOs of the major automobile companies to follow in the footsteps of Lee Iacocca. In 1979 he built trust with taxpayers and credibility in negotiations by cutting his pay and basically working for nothing to reinvigorate Chrysler with public dollars.
As I closely monitor the use of public dollars that are unleashed to boost the U.S. economy, I’m looking to prevent waste, fraud and abuse that seem to follow Uncle Sam wherever he goes. I’ve called upon the Fed and Treasury officials to take precautions to direct dollars to distressed homeowners in need of help and weed out those who may have gamed the system.
Although most headlines today are focused on reporting foreclosure and unemployment rates, the Justice Department has reported another $1 billion worth of good news thanks to an anti-fraud tool I helped write into law in 1986.
The Justice Department said during the last fiscal year, the Federal Treasury reclaimed $1.34 billion in settlements and judgments via the False Claims Act. That brings the law’s success to a total of more than $21 billion recovered that would otherwise have been lost to fraud.
Examples of exposed wrongdoing include paying kickbacks to physicians, wholesalers and pharmacies to promote drug or medical device purchases billed to Medicare; establishing inflated drug prices with the knowledge federal health care programs use these prices to reimburse providers; and knowingly failing to report the “best price” for a drug to reduce rebates owed to the Medicaid program.
The road to discovery and recovery often begins with the bold first steps of a private citizen working within a hospital, pharmacy, pharmaceutical company or defense contractor who steps forward with information about possible fraud. My bipartisan amendments created financial incentives for these individuals – who risk their jobs and livelihoods – to blow the whistle on wrongdoing and file suit on behalf of the United States against those who fraudulently claim federal funds. From defense to health care, disaster assistance and other public benefits, the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act have strengthened the federal government’s single most effective anti-fraud tool in history.
The broad scope of government programs where the False Claims Act has helped recover taxpayer dollars is a testament to its flexibility and value. For example, if it’s determined that any of the financial bailout package money has been misspent or obtained in a fraudulent way, whistleblowers and the government can work cooperatively to recover the loss on behalf of taxpayers. This tool is especially important given the amount of money at stake and the unprecedented nature and pace of the government’s actions.
My qui tam amendments deter untold billions of tax dollars that would otherwise be lost to fraud. It helps smoke out those who scheme to turn the Federal Treasury into their personal cash cow. I’ll continue to champion Uncle Sam’s most effective anti-fraud law that protects public tax dollars and helps put greedy wrongdoers out to pasture.