Whistleblower Law Collaborative Adds Former DOJ Senior Health Care Fraud Counsel Augustine M. Ripa

12-year Justice Department veteran brings deep health care fraud enforcement experience to the whistleblower firm

BOSTON, Sept. 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Whistleblower Law Collaborative LLC (WLC), a firm dedicated to representing whistleblowers nationwide under the False Claims Act and other whistleblower rewards programs, today announced that Augustine M. (Augie) Ripa is joining the firm as a partner, effective September 28.

Ripa spent 12 years with the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Fraud Section, which handles False Claims Act matters nationwide in partnership with the 94 U.S. Attorney's Offices. There, he investigated and prosecuted dozens of False Claims Act matters, recovering more than $2.1 billion, primarily involving health care fraud. As Senior Counsel for Health Care Fraud, he also supervised DOJ attorneys on numerous health care cases, served as a go-to resource for his office and Assistant U.S. Attorneys on complex fraud schemes and investigative strategies and advised leadership on health care FCA enforcement policy issues. Ripa regularly led trainings for DOJ attorneys and AUSAs nationwide, including the Department's annual Civil Health Care Fraud training conference for new attorneys.

During his time at the DOJ, Ripa was instrumental in conceiving, establishing, and managing its current health care data analytics capabilities. He served as a DOJ participant in the FOCUS Initiative, designed to strengthen DOJ's working relationship with whistleblowers on data analytics. He was also a key participant on the new DOJ/HHS FCA working group, which is dedicated to combating health care fraud through FCA enforcement.

"We are honored and thrilled that Augie has chosen to join Whistleblower Law Collaborative," said firm co-founder Suzanne E. Durrell. "He brings valuable and robust experience as a government prosecutor and shares our passion for fighting fraud and bringing wrongdoers to justice. Augie will strengthen our ability to continue achieving outstanding results in this complex, ever-changing area of the law while supporting our courageous clients every step of the way. As former government attorneys ourselves, we look forward to welcoming Augie on board and forging future successes together."

At WLC, Ripa will focus his practice on health care False Claims Act matters, with a particular interest in cases predicated on pharmaceutical pricing violations, including underpayment of Medicaid rebates, misreporting of Medicare or Medicaid pricing data, and mischaracterization of price concessions, as well as Anti-Kickback Statute violations and FDA/regulatory approval issues. That experience comes as government scrutiny of pharmaceutical pricing continues to expand in legacy pricing programs and those created or broadened by the Inflation Reduction Act.

"I knew that if I ever contemplated leaving government service, it would be for a firm known for fighting fraud by bringing complex whistleblower cases that have a broad impact," said Ripa. "Whistleblower Law Collaborative attracts those cases, does the necessary and invaluable investigative work, and provides the experience that the government can leverage to hold wrongdoers accountable. That's why when an opportunity with WLC came up, I knew I had to take it."

A Career Built on Complex, High-Impact Health Care Fraud Cases

Ripa's casework at DOJ included:

• Over $1.0 billion recovered in numerous government cases alleging that multiple drug companies paid kickbacks through sham third-party foundations to eliminate patient and doctor price sensitivity while raising drug prices for Medicare. In 2019, he and his DOJ colleagues filed the government's first complaint advancing this theory and secured the first federal court opinion unequivocally endorsing it as a basis for liability under the False Claims Act and Anti-Kickback Statute.
• Over $700 million recovered while serving as lead DOJ attorney on high-profile cases against multiple drug companies alleging that they defrauded the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program of rebates owed as a result of their own price increases, including $465 million from Mylan over its alleged misclassification of EpiPen (United States ex rel. Sanofi-Aventis US LLC v. Mylan), $260 million from Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals over its alleged underpayment of Medicaid rebates for Acthar Gel (United States ex rel. Landolt v. Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals) and up to $50 million from Nostrum for underpaying rebates on its drug nitrofurantoin, a matter that led to the exclusion of the company's CEO from the Medicare program (In re: Nostrum Nitrofurantoin Medicaid Rebates). These matters also led to subsequent regulatory and legislative action to safeguard the programs at issue.
• A $250 million settlement, among the largest of its kind at the time, resolving allegations of a urine drug testing kickback scheme at a laboratory (United States ex rel. McGuire v. Millennium).
• A $41 million settlement resolving allegations of duplicative urine drug testing against a reference laboratory and two individuals (United States ex rel. Cho v. Surgery Partners).

Ripa's work also spanned a wide range of federal health care programs and pricing schemes, including Medicare Part C and Part D, the 340B program, pharmacy benefit managers, and government pricing metrics such as Average Manufacturer Price, Best Price, and Average Sales Price.

During his tenure at DOJ, Ripa received multiple departmental honors, including the DOJ Division Special Commendation, a prestigious internal award for outstanding service, exemplary performance and dedication in representing the interests of the United States. He also received the HHS-OIG Inspector General's Award for Excellence in Fighting Fraud, Waste, and Abuse, and an FBI Certificate of Appreciation.

Prior to joining the DOJ to fight civil fraud, Ripa spent six years in private practice representing clients in FCA and white-collar defense matters, including as an associate at Ropes & Gray LLP. He also maintained an active pro bono practice in public-interest impact litigation and representing individuals through sensitive and difficult circumstances.

Ripa earned his J.D. with honors from The George Washington University Law School and his B.S. and B.A. with high honors from Lehigh University.

About Whistleblower Law Collaborative

Whistleblower Law Collaborative LLC is one of the nation's leading whistleblower firms. It devotes its practice entirely to representing clients nationwide in bringing actions under the federal and state whistleblower laws and programs, including the False Claims Act. All of the firm's partners are former government prosecutors with a passion for fighting fraud and an unwavering commitment to justice. For more information, visit whistleblowerllc.com.

Media Contact:
Kevin Aschenbrenner
[email protected]
250-508-3244

SOURCE Whistleblower Law Collaborative LLC