Whistleblower Earns $1.9 Million Award in Claim Against CHS

4514 Cole Ave, #600 | Dallas, Texas 75205

Call Kardell Law Group 214-306-8045

A former executive at a Community Health Systems, Inc. (CHS)-owned multispecialty clinic based in Washington state recently won a $1.9 million award after filing a whistleblower lawsuit against CHS and the clinic at which he worked.

According to a report from the Spokesman-Review, former CFO Gregg Becker filed the suit 2012, claiming at the time that he had been pressured to change the company’s financial projections from a $12.8 million loss to a $4 million loss. When he refused to do this, the company allegedly fired him.

The case went in front of an administrative judge with the U.S. Department of Labor in November. The judge ruled in the claimant’s favor, awarding him $1.9 million — including more $341,000 in back pay, approximately $1.5 million in front pay and an additional $15,000 for damage to reputation and attorneys’ fees.

CHS appealed this most recent decision to the administrative review board, so that case is still pending. The company released a statement that read in part: “We believe the original decision of the agency dismissing Becker’s claim was correctly decided.”

Filing a whistleblower claim

Under federal law, whistleblowers can receive certain protections against retaliation if they alert authorities to a company’s wrongdoing. In this particular case, Becker appeared to be a victim of retaliation even before acting as a whistleblower. Because he promptly alerted the proper authorities, he was able to recover a significant award.

Individuals who are aware of major violations occurring within their organizations should understand the rewards whistleblowers could receive from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and other regulatory bodies. For further guidance on this important issues, consult a skilled Dallas attorney at Whistleblower Law for Managers.

By Steve Kardell | Published January 12, 2017 | Posted in Whistleblower Litigation | Tagged $1.9M award, Community Health Systems

Awards & Honors

Our Office

Dallas Office
4514 Cole Ave
#600
Dallas, Texas 75205
Phone: 214-306-8045
Fax: 469-729-9926

Testimonials

"Steve Kardell was terrific in representing me in some very adversarial discussions with Citigroup and also later represented me in my testimony before the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission." -Richard Bowen, Citigroup Whistleblower
"Incredible knowledge of employee related concerns and equally brilliant knowledge of health care regulations, standards of practice. I would recommend this firm to anyone." -V.B.
"Reaching out to Steve Kardell was the best decision I made. His ability to provide immediate insight and direction was very powerful, and a huge relief during a very stressful time period. For anyone struggling with a whistleblower situation, I would highly recommend at least speaking with Steve. After a 10 minute call with him, I had a better understanding of what I was dealing with. Even better, he gave me some immediate hope. In the end Steve did a better job than I thought was possible. Steve was able to get in contact with people in my organization, that I didn’t have access to. Because of his years of experience, he already has contacts in many organizations in Dallas. The entire situation was handled peacefully. I was impressed by his ability to “keep the peace”–rather than creating a battle with the organization. The reason I didn’t reach out to a lawyer initially, was because I thought it would mean an immediate end to any hope of a positive relationship with the company. Steve was able to address my concerns, and in the end I was able to continue to work for them." -KS
"Never thought my career would end like it did after 30 years of service. I was part of the first round of the so called reduction of force. I asked myself how can I be part of this with 30 years of seniority. How did they pick these 90 plus employees? Now, the culture of this organization made you question every decision they made. It wasn’t what you knew it’s was a culture of who you know. Nonetheless, I did not accept their severance package. I immediately starting looking for an attorney who would take on my case. After the initial call to Steve I had hope again. He was open and honest about everything and reassured me he would do his best for me, and he did. I had an awesome outcome. Thanks Steve you’re the best." -S.S.