High Court Wants US View on Drug Fraud Claims Against SuperValu

The US Supreme Court invited the solicitor general to express the government’s views on whether the court should revive a False Claims Act suit alleging SuperValu Inc. overcharged federal healthcare programs for prescription drugs.

Whistleblowers Tracy Schutte and Michael Yarberry contend that SuperValu caused Medicare and Medicaid to overpay for drugs by misreporting its usual and customary prices to those programs.

The US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, in a split decision, rejected the suit. It held that SuperValu didn’t knowingly misreport the usual and customary prices it charged. A defendant in an FCA suit lacks scienter if ...