SUBPART C.  QUI TAM ACTION

§439.1.  Qui tam action, civil action filed by private person

A.  A private person may institute a civil action in the courts of this state on behalf of the medical assistance programs and himself to seek recovery for a violation of R.S. 46:438.2, 438.3, or 438.4 pursuant to the provisions of this Subpart.  The institutor shall be known as a "qui tam plaintiff" and the civil action shall be known as a "qui tam action".

B.  No qui tam action shall be instituted more than six years after the date on which the violation of the Louisiana Medical Assistance Programs Integrity Law is committed or more than three years after the date the facts material to the right of action are known or reasonably should have been known by the official of the state of Louisiana charged with the responsibility to act in the circumstances, but no more than ten years after the date on which the violation is committed, whichever occurs last.

C.  The burden of proof in a qui tam action instituted pursuant to this Subpart shall be the same as that set forth in R.S. 46:438.8.

D.(1)  The court shall dismiss an action or claim in accordance with this Section, unless opposed by the government, if substantially the same allegations or transactions as alleged in the action or claim were publicly disclosed in any of the following:

(a)  A criminal, civil, or administrative hearing in which the government or its agent is a party.

(b)  A congressional or government accountability office or other federal report, hearing, audit, or investigation.

(c)  The news media, unless the action is brought by the attorney general or the person bringing the action is an original source of the information.

(2)  For the purposes of this Subsection, "original source" means an individual who,  prior to a public disclosure in accordance with this Subsection, has voluntarily disclosed to the government the information on which allegations or transactions in a claim are based or who has knowledge that is independent of and materially adds to the publicly disclosed allegations or transactions, and who has voluntarily provided the information to the government before filing an action in accordance with this Subpart.

E.  Any employee, contractor, or agent shall be entitled to all relief necessary to make that employee, contractor, or agent whole, if the employee, contractor, or agent is discharged, demoted, suspended, threatened, harassed, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of employment because of lawful acts done by the employee, contractor, agent, or associated others in furtherance of an action in accordance with this Part or other efforts to stop one or more violations of this Part.

(1)  Relief in accordance with this Subsection shall include reinstatement with the same seniority status the employee, contractor, or agent would have had but for the discrimination, two times the amount of back pay, interest on the back pay, and compensation for any special damages sustained as a result of the discrimination, including litigation costs and reasonable attorney fees.  An action in accordance with this Section may be brought in the appropriate district court of competent jurisdiction for the relief provided in this Section.

(2)   A civil action in accordance with this Section may not be brought more than three years after the date the retaliation occurred.

F.  The court shall allow the secretary or the attorney general to intervene and proceed with the qui tam action in the district court at any time during the qui tam action proceedings.

G.  Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, a qui tam complaint and information filed with the secretary or attorney general shall not be subject to discovery or become public record until judicial service of the qui tam action is made on any of the defendants, except that the information contained therein may be given to other governmental entities or their authorized agents for review and investigation. The entities and their authorized agents shall maintain the confidentiality of the information provided to them under this Subsection.

H, I.  Repealed by Acts 2011, No. 185, §2.

Acts 1997, No. 1373, §1; Acts 2009, No. 426, §1; Acts 2011, No. 185, §§1, 2.