Department of Justice Announces First-of-Its-Kind Antitrust Whistleblower Program

The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division has launched its first-ever Whistleblower Rewards Program, working in tandem with the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and Postal Inspection Service. Under this new program, individuals who provide credible information leading to successful antitrust prosecutions are eligible for awards between 15% and 30% of any criminal fines the government recovers, so long as those fines reach a minimum of $1 million.

Who Is Eligible to Receive a Reward in the Whistleblower Rewards Program?

To be eligible for an award under this program, a whistleblower must provide original information (i.e., information not already known to the United States from other sources), must provide that information prior to any formal legal demand for the information (e.g., a grand jury subpoena), and the information must relate to eligible criminal violations. Eligible violations under this program include criminal violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act, federal criminal violations targeting federal procurement, and federal criminal violations relating to competition investigations or proceedings.

While this new program covers a wide range of anticompetitive behavior, the Antitrust Division appears to be particularly interested in illegal behavior that impacts healthcare competition. In a separate article, the Antitrust Division has highlighted this focus, noting that “If you need medical care, fair competition helps lower the price you pay and improve the quality of your care. If your job is in healthcare, competition helps you get a fair wage and opportunities to grow.” That article goes on to list examples of unlawful conduct that can harm healthcare competition, including:

• Consolidation, joint ventures, and “roll-ups” of health care companies and providers;
• Limiting choice and fair wages for healthcare employees;
• Collusion and price fixing among competitors in the healthcare industry;
• Anticompetitive uses of healthcare data;
• Unnecessary provider recertification or accreditation requirements.

This Antitrust Whistleblower program is part of a broader push by the federal government to fill some of the enforcement gaps in existing whistleblower laws and programs. In 2024, the DOJ created a separate Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program, to reward tips on areas like healthcare fraud, foreign corruption, and cartel activity.

Given the importance of whistleblowers in recovering public funds and uncovering corporate misdeeds, this new Antitrust program is a welcome addition to the government’s enforcement toolkit.

Whistleblower Law Firm for Medicare Fraud

Barrett Johnston Martin & Garrison, PLLC, is committed to representing whistleblowers throughout the country. If you have information or questions regarding a potential case of health care fraud, FCA violations, or kickback schemes, schedule a free and confidential consultation with our firm.