The lawsuit alleges that, as a result of NOVARTIS's kickback scheme, Medicare and Medicaid have issued tens of millions of dollars in reimbursements based on false, kickback-tainted claims. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: "As alleged, using the lure of kickbacks disguised as rebates, Novartis co-opted the independence of certain pharmacists and turned them into salespeople for one of its drugs. And by allegedly hiding this illegal quid pro quo from physicians, patients, and federal healthcare programs, Novartis caused the public to pay tens of millions of dollars for kickback-tainted drugs that were dispensed by pharmacists who were in cahoots with the company. Novartis, as we allege, is a repeat offender, having settled healthcare fraud charges based on kickbacks less than three years ago." FBI Assistant Director Ronald T. Hosko said: "The FBI takes these allegations very seriously because of the potential impact to the nation's healthcare system and to the public.