§ 1320a–7a.
(o)
Penalties for violations of grants, contracts, and other agreements
Any person (including an organization, agency, or other entity, but excluding a program beneficiary, as defined in subsection (q)(4)) that, with respect to a grant, contract, or other agreement for which the Secretary provides funding—
(1)
knowingly presents or causes to be presented a specified claim (as defined in subsection (r)) under such grant, contract, or other agreement that the person knows or should know is false or fraudulent;
(2)
knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used any false statement, omission, or misrepresentation of a material fact in any application, proposal, bid, progress report, or other document that is required to be submitted in order to directly or indirectly receive or retain funds provided in whole or in part by such Secretary pursuant to such grant, contract, or other agreement;
(3)
knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement material to a false or fraudulent specified claim under such grant, contract, or other agreement;
(4)
knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement material to an obligation (as defined in subsection (s)) to pay or transmit funds or property to such Secretary with respect to such grant, contract, or other agreement, or knowingly conceals or knowingly and improperly avoids or decreases an obligation to pay or transmit funds or property to such Secretary with respect to such grant, contract, or other agreement; or
(5)
fails to grant timely access, upon reasonable request (as defined by such Secretary in regulations), to the Inspector General of the Department, for the purpose of audits, investigations, evaluations, or other statutory functions of such Inspector General in matters involving such grants, contracts, or other agreements;
shall be subject, in addition to any other penalties that may be prescribed by law, to a civil money penalty in cases under paragraph (1), of not more than $10,000 for each specified claim; in cases under paragraph (2), not more than $50,000 for each false statement, omission, or misrepresentation of a material fact; in cases under paragraph (3), not more than $50,000 for each false record or statement; in cases under paragraph (4), not more than $50,000 for each false record or statement or $10,000 for each day that the person knowingly conceals or knowingly and improperly avoids or decreases an obligation to pay; or in cases under paragraph (5), not more than $15,000 for each day of the failure described in such paragraph. In addition, in cases under paragraphs (1) and (3), such a person shall be subject to an assessment of not more than 3 times the amount claimed in the specified claim described in such paragraph in lieu of damages sustained by the United States or a specified State agency because of such specified claim, and in cases under paragraphs (2) and (4), such a person shall be subject to an assessment of not more than 3 times the tota
(q)
Definitions of terms used in subsections (o) and (p)
For purposes of this subsection and subsections (o) and (p):
(1)
The term “Department” means the Department of Health and Human Services.
(2)
The term “material” means having a natural tendency to influence, or be capable of influencing, the payment or receipt of money or property.
(3)
The term “other agreement” includes a cooperative agreement, scholarship, fellowship, loan, subsidy, payment for a specified use, donation agreement, award, or subaward (regardless of whether one or more of the persons entering into the agreement is a contractor or subcontractor).
(4)
The term “program beneficiary” means, in the case of a grant, contract, or other agreement designed to accomplish the objective of awarding or otherwise furnishing benefits or assistance to individuals and for which the Secretary provides funding, an individual who applies for, or who receives, such benefits or assistance from such grant, contract, or other agreement. Such term does not include, with respect to such grant, contract, or other agreement, an officer, employee, or agent of a person or entity that receives such grant or that enters into such contract or other agreement.
(5)
The term “recipient” includes a subrecipient or subcontractor.
(6)
The term “specified State agency” means an agency of a State government established or designated to administer or supervise the administration of a grant, contract, or other agreement funded in whole or in part by the Secretary.
([Aug. 14, 1935, ch. 531], title XI, § 1128A, as added [Pub. L. 97–35, title XXI, § 2105(a)], Aug. 13, 1981, [95 Stat. 789]; amended [Pub. L. 97–248, title I, § 137(b)(26)], Sept. 3, 1982, [96 Stat. 380]; [Pub. L. 98–369, div. B, title III], §§ 2306(f)(1), 2354(a)(3), July 18, 1984, [98 Stat. 1073], 1100; [Pub. L. 99–509, title IX], §§ 9313(c)(1), 9317(a), (b), Oct. 21, 1986, [100 Stat. 2003], 2008; [Pub. L. 100–93, § 3], Aug. 18, 1987, [101 Stat. 686]; [Pub. L. 100–203, title IV], §§ 4039(h)(1), 4118(e)(1), (6)–(10), Dec. 22, 1987, [101 Stat. 1330–155], as amended [Pub. L. 100–360, title IV, § 411(e)(3)], (k)(10)(B)(ii), (D), July 1, 1988, [102 Stat. 775], 794, 795; [Pub. L. 100–360, title II, § 202(c)(2)], July 1, 1988, [102 Stat. 715]; [Pub. L. 100–485, title VI, § 608(d)(26)(H)]–(K)(i), Oct. 13, 1988, [102 Stat. 2422]; [Pub. L. 101–234, title II, § 201(a)], Dec. 13, 1989, [103 Stat. 1981]; [Pub. L. 101–239, title VI, § 6003(g)(3)(D)(i)], Dec. 19, 1989, [103 Stat. 2153]; [Pub. L. 101–508, title IV], §§ 4204(a)(3), 4207(h), formerly 4027(h), 4731(b)(1), 4753, Nov. 5, 1990, [104 Stat. 1388–109], 1388–123, 1388–195, 1388–208, renumbered § 4207(h), [Pub. L. 103–432, title I, § 160(d)(4)], Oct. 31, 1994, [108 Stat. 4444]; [Pub. L. 104–191, title II], §§ 231(a)–(e), (h), 232(a), Aug. 21, 1996, [110 Stat. 2012–2015]; [Pub. L. 105–33, title IV], §§ 4201(c)(1), 4304(a), (b), 4331(e), 4523(c), Aug. 5, 1997, [111 Stat. 373], 383, 396, 449; [Pub. L. 105–277, div. J, title V, § 5201(a)], (b)(1), Oct. 21, 1998, [112 Stat. 2681–916]; [Pub. L. 111–148, title VI], §§ 6402(d)(2), 6408(a), 6703(d)(3)(B), Mar. 23, 2010, [124 Stat. 757], 770, 804; [Pub. L. 114–10, title V, § 512(a)(1)], Apr. 16, 2015, [129 Stat. 170]; [Pub. L. 114–255, div. A, title V, § 5003], Dec. 13, 2016, [130 Stat. 1188]; [Pub. L. 115–123, div. E, title III, § 50302(c)], title IV, § 50412(a)(1), Feb. 9, 2018, [132 Stat. 191], 220; [Pub. L. 117–286, § 4(b)(77)], Dec. 27, 2022, [136 Stat. 4351].)