A former pharmacy and current group of professional relators
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Ven-A-Care of the Florida Keys is a four-person[1] former pharmacy and one of the most successful qui tam relators of all time, producing more than $2.2B in revenue for the government and $380M for the relators.[2] During a study conducted on whistleblowing efforts between November 2010 and July 2012, they accounted for almost half of the whistleblower-prompted federal and state settlements.[3]
Ven-A-Care was co-founded by Mark Jones and Luis Cobo[2] as a pharmacy in the 1987.[4] They specialized in to providing end-of-life care to HIV and cancer patients during the AIDS Crisis. This came primarily in the form of home infusions.[5]
In 1991 W. R. Grace and Company allegedly approached Ven-A-Care about partnering to open a new AIDS clinic, termed National Medical Care Inc. In lawsuits, Ven-A-Care alleged that National Medical Care Inc intended to choose the drugs that would make the clinic the most money, rather than selecting them for medical reasons.[5]
When the new clinic opened, it took most of the business in the area, and Ven-A-Care's revenue dried up. This inspired Ven-A-Care to investigate National Medical Care Inc for fraudulent behavior, and in 1994 they filed their first qui tam lawsuit.[5] A $500M settlement in 2000 against National Medical Care Inc broke Department of Justice records and included a $100M criminal penalty.[6]
In 2011, after 18 cases handled by settlement, a Ven-A-Care secured its first trial victory over Actavis.[2] The verdict was appealed, and the eventual settlement was for far less.[20] A separate case against Par Pharmaceutical also settled.[21][22] Two additional cases against Watson Pharmaceuticals and a unit of Novartis also settled.[23]
In 2013, Ven-A-Care settled a price manipulation case against Pfizer.[24]
In 2017, Ven-A-Care settled a second case against Mylan,[25] this time with former defendant Sanofi (via Avantis) as a co-relator.[26]
