The recent announcement by the Department of Justice (DOJ) that it obtained more than $3 billion in judgments and settlements under the False Claims Act (FCA) in FY 2019 underscores the ongoing enforcement risks companies face in the health care, defense and other industries.

The DOJ’s statistics reflecting its total yearly recoveries under the FCA demonstrate that the department’s civil fraud enforcement efforts continue to be robust, particularly in the health care and life sciences industries, which generated about $2.6 billion of the recoveries last year. Qui tam actions filed by whistleblowers (relators) continue to be the source of most FCA payouts.