Whistleblower attorney Timothy J. McInnis announced his client, Clemire Young, will receive $60,000 (20%) from the proceeds of a $300,000 Government healthcare fraud settlement with The Brookdale Hospital Medical Center (“Brookdale Hospital”), a 530-bed, nonprofit teaching hospital located at One Brookdale Plaza, Brooklyn, NY.
The settlement, which was approved by US District Judge I. Leo Glasser on 5/17/2023,
resolves allegations brought by Ms. Young , a former employee of Brookdale Hospital, under the qui tam whistleblower provisions of the Federal and NY False Claims Acts. Her complaint, which had been under seal since April 2019, alleged Brookdale Hospital violated these acts by causing ineligible participants to receive WIC benefits and misappropriating WIC grant funds by, among other things, paying employees for no show jobs and buying things for personal use, such as furniture.
WIC is the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children. It is a federal funded/state administered program serving low-income pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutritional risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, including breastfeeding promotion and support, and referrals to health care.
Ms Young, through attorney McInnis, expressed appreciation for the investigative and
settlement efforts of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York and the Office of Inspector General for the US Department of Agriculture. “This case is an example where a concerned employee saw the tip of the iceberg and reported it to authorities who then were able to expose the whole iceberg,” said McInnis.
