U.S. FILES COMPLAINT AGAINST DIETARY SUPPLEMENT COMPANY, COO AND QUALITY ASSURANCE MANAGER

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

U.S. Files Complaint and Consent Decree Against Mira Health and Senior Officers

The United States has filed a complaint and the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York has entered a consent decree against Mira Health Ltd. (Mira), its chief operating officer, Michael S. Ragno Sr., and its quality assurance manager, Michael S. Ragno Jr., all of Farmingdale, New York.

Assistant Attorney General Stuart F. Delery of the Justice Department’s Civil Division and U.S. Attorney Loretta E. Lynch of the Eastern District of New York made the announcement.

The lawsuit alleges that the defendants violated the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) by manufacturing and distributing dietary supplements that were adulterated.  Under the FDCA dietary supplement manufacturers are required have systems in place to ensure that their products meet specifications for identity, purity, strength and composition.   The government’s actions resulted from a series of inspections of Mira’s manufacturing facility, which revealed, among other things, that Mira failed to ensure that components, dietary supplements, packaging and labels were not mixed-up, contaminated or deteriorated.

In conjunction with the filing of the complaint, the defendants agreed to settle the litigation and be bound by a consent decree of permanent injunction that prohibits them from committing violations of the FDCA.   The consent decree requires the dietary supplement manufacturer to cease all operations and requires that if the defendants wish to resume manufacturing dietary supplements in the future, the FDA first must determine that Mira’s manufacturing practices have come into compliance with the law.   The consent decree was entered by the court today.

Mira gained national attention in July 2013 when Purity First Health Ltd, a company that sold dietary supplements manufactured by Mira, became the subject of an FDA recall.   Anabolic steroids were found to be present in the Healthy Life Chemistry By Purity B-50 dietary supplement.   At the time of the recall, 29 illnesses and one hospitalization had been documented.

The FDA referred this matter to the Department of Justice.  The Consumer Protection Branch of the Justice Department’s Civil Division together with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York filed this case on behalf of the United States.

RELOCATION SERVICES COMPANY WILL PAY NEARLY $510,000 TO SETTLE OVERBILLING CHARGES

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT 

Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Virginia-Based Move Management Company Pays More Than $500,000 to Settle Overbilling Claims in Connection with Transportation of Personal Property in Relocating Federal Employees

RE/MAX Allegiance Relocation Services, a Virginia-based move management company, has agreed to pay the government $509,807 to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by overbilling for transportation services, the Department of Justice announced today.

 “Today’s settlement demonstrates our continuing vigilance to ensure that those doing business with the government do so legally and honestly and that taxpayer funds are not misused,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division Stuart F. Delery.  “Government contractors who seek to profit at the expense of taxpayers will be held accountable.”

The settlement relates to allegations involving contracts to transport personal property of federal employees relocating duty stations within the United States and between the United States and Canada.  The government alleged that the defendant charged for move management services that were not provided and overbilled agencies on other moves by charging inapplicable tariff rates.

“We encourage whistleblowers to provide us with useful information to help us combat all manners of fraud on the U.S. Government,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Dana J. Boente.

“We will continue to investigate allegations of federal contractors fraudulently maximizing their profits at the expense of American taxpayers,” said U.S. General Services Administration Acting Inspector General Robert C. Erickson.
         
The settlement resolves allegations filed in a lawsuit by Michael Angel, a former employee of RE/MAX Allegiance Relocation Services, in federal court in Alexandria, Virginia.  The lawsuit was filed under the qui tam, or whistleblower, provisions of the False Claims Act, which permit private individuals to sue on behalf of the government for false claims and to share in any recovery.  The act also allows the government to intervene and take over the action, as it did in this case.  Angel will receive $86,667.

The settlement was the result of a coordinated effort by the Civil Division of the Department of Justice, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia, the General Services Administration Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General, Department of Agriculture Office of Inspector General and NASA Office of Inspector General.    

The case is captioned United States ex rel. Michael Angel v. Franconia Real Estate Services, Inc., d/b/a RE/MAX Allegiance Relocation Services; No. 1:12cv764 (E.D.Va.).  The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only; there has been no determination of liability.