Rampant fraud continues to be revealed in the abortion giant.
Today, the Alliance Defense Fund announced that they have filed a complaint against Planned Parenthood on behalf of former Planned Parenthood director, Abby Johnson. Johnson is bringing her case under the Federal False Claims Act and the Texas Medicaid Fraud Prevention Act.
In their press release, ADF states:
ADF attorneys filed the suit under a federal law that allows “whistleblowers” with inside information to expose fraudulent billing by government contractors. By law, such cases must initially be filed under seal and may not be made public while federal and state governments decide whether to join the case….
The lawsuit alleges that Planned Parenthood of Houston and Southeast Texas, now known as Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast, filed at least 87,075 false, fraudulent, or ineligible claims with the Texas Women’s Health Program. As a result, Planned Parenthood wrongfully received and retained reimbursements totaling more than $5.7 million.
The complaint, which can be read in its entirety here, details the many false claims that Planned Parenthood made. Johnson, who is now a Senior Advisor for Americans United for Life, claims that approximately 40% of the types of claims discussed in the complaint were “false, fraudulent, and/or ineligible.”
Furthermore, the complaint details that she has personal, direct, and non-public knowledge of these false claims. The fraudulent activity of Planned Parenthood included 33,005 claims and amounted to $3,692,092 in 2007. It included 26,675 claims in 2008 and $780,268 that year. In 2009, the fraudulent claims numbered 27,395, and the dollars added up to $1,228,695.
According to the complaint, “Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast wrongfully received and retained reimbursements from Texas WHP funds totaling at least $5,701,055.” The complaint goes on to detail exactly how the abortion giant intentionally covered up their fraud. Johnson asks the court for several things in judgment, including three times the damages sustained by the United States and two times the damages sustained by the state of Texas.
Mike Norton, who is Senior Counsel for ADF on the life issue stated:
Americans deserve to know if their hard-earned tax money is being funneled to groups that are misusing it. No matter where a person stands on abortion, everyone should agree that Planned Parenthood has to play by the same rules as everyone else. It certainly isn’t entitled to a penny of public funds, especially if it is committing Medicaid fraud.
Dr.Charmaine Yoest, President and CEO of Americans United for Life, is in full support of Johnson’s lawsuit. She explains:
This case bravely brought by AUL’s Senior Advisor Abby Johnson is more evidence of Planned Parenthood’s harmful and dishonest practices and cannot be ignored. With such evidence consistently building, the American public deserves answers. Currently, taxpayers are forced to give over $1 million dollars a day in tax monies to this organization under investigation. AUL calls on Congress to continue its investigation of the nation’s largest abortion provider and to hold public hearings.
More information concerning Planned Parenthood’s rampant fraud can be found in ADF’s report, which they released to Congress, and AUL’s, “The Case for Investigating Planned Parenthood.”
