False Claims
One Insider’s Impossible Battle Against Big Pharma Corruption
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
In Big Pharma, lives are secondary to profit margins. But in this gripping whistleblower memoir, Lisa Pratta stood her ground—risking everything to expose the lies of a billion-dollar pharmaceutical business mired in deception, greed, and the systemic abuse of both patients and employees.
As a rising star in pharmaceutical sales, Lisa Pratta wanted to believe that she was helping improve the lives of people who suffered from illness. But as she climbed the corporate ladder, she uncovered a sinister world of corporate corruption, bribery, fraud, and sexual harassment—all papered over with a thin veneer of corporate respectability.
At Questcor Pharmaceuticals, Lisa found herself at a small company with a blockbuster drug that could have been a lifeline for patients suffering from multiple sclerosis—that is, if it was prescribed properly. But instead, Questcor chose profits over patients, training its sales force to push untested treatment regimens with the sole purpose of beating its competition. Lisa recognized this dangerous medical fraud as not only dangerous but highly illegal. In the midst of this controversy, Questcor arbitrarily inflated the drug’s price to a jaw-dropping $28,000 per vial. Torn between her morals and the financial stability the job provided for her special-needs son, Lisa made a decision that would change her life forever: she reported the fraudulent practices of the company to the federal government.
For nearly a decade, she led a double life—feeding insider information to the Department of Justice for a landmark whistleblower lawsuit while enduring the relentless demands of her company to sell their drug using illegal marketing tactics. She faced constant fear of exposure, knowing that the government offered her no protection if her secrets were revealed. Nonetheless, Lisa pressed on, determined to hold Questcor accountable for the laws they were breaking and the lives they were endangering.
This incredible true story offers a sobering look at the unscrupulous sales methods used by America’s corrupt pharmaceutical industry, spotlights the levers they pull to extract ludicrous profits from the sick and dying, and is a page-turning portrait of one woman’s heroic fight against Big Pharma and a mother’s struggle to protect her family.
How does a single mother and pharmaceutical insider take on a billion-dollar giant and expose its crimes to the federal government?
A Whistleblower’s Double Life: For nearly a decade, Lisa Pratta fed information to the Department of Justice, living in constant fear of exposure while fighting to protect her special-needs son, Marco.Big Pharma’s Playbook: Discover the shocking tactics—from bribing doctors to pushing untested treatments and inflating a drug’s price to an astounding $28,000 a vial—used to put profits over patients.A Landmark Lawsuit: Get an inside look at the high-stakes legal battle where one woman’s courage led to a historic case against Questcor Pharmaceuticals under the False Claims Act.A Mother’s Fierce Protection: At the heart of the story is a parent’s unwavering fight for the financial stability needed to care for her son, forcing an impossible choice between her conscience and her family.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this passionate debut, former pharmaceutical sales rep Pratta recounts her efforts to bring one of her employers to justice. After surviving an abusive childhood in New Jersey, Pratta began a career in drug sales in the 1980s. During her first several years in the field, she set annual sales records despite encountering rampant sexism. Her commitment to the industry eroded, however, after she started working for pharmaceutical company Questcor. Shortly after she started the job, Pratta learned Questor was encouraging its salespeople to promote off-label use of multiple sclerosis drug Acthar at excessively high doses in order to juice profits. Pratta's friend and colleague, Pete Keller, told her that he was going to report Questor's falsehoods to the feds and convinced Pratta to join him. In the end, Questor's parent company, Mallinckrodt, agreed to settle with the federal government, though Pratta acknowledges that what disturbed her—"the kickbacks, the bribes, the off-label prescription use"—continues at other companies. Still, her pride in becoming "a person who had the ability to stand up for others" resonates. This is both an illuminating up-close look at how corruption works and a moving account of one person discovering her strength.