Erica Blachman Hitchings

Erica Blachman Hitchings became a member of the Whistleblower Law Collaborative LLC after nearly nine years in the U.S. Department of Justice where she successfully investigated, litigated, and settled a wide range of False Claims Act cases.

Ms. Hitchings joined the Department of Justice as a member of the prestigious Attorney General’s Honors Program in 2009, after spending two years clerking for the Honorable Patti B. Saris, Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.  She first served as a Trial Attorney in the Civil Fraud section in Washington, D.C. and then as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Northern District of California.  Over the course of her career at DOJ, Erica B Hitchings conducted dozens of health care, procurement, and other fraud investigations that resulted in the recovery of hundreds of millions of dollars by the United States.

In the health care fraud arena, for example, Ms. Hitchings investigated and successfully resolved allegations that a nationwide skilled nursing home chain submitted false claims for skilled therapy services; that a large hospital system admitted patients who could have been treated on a less costly, outpatient basis; and that sleep centers used unlicensed technicians to administer overnight tests to unwitting patients.  Ms. Hitchings also has significant expertise in the area of Medicare Advantage, Stark Law, the Anti-Kickback statute, and pharmaceutical off-label marketing schemes.  More specifically, Erica simultaneously ran two cutting-edge Medicare Advantage fraud investigations while at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, one of which recently resulted in a $90 million recovery and another in which the government has intervened and alleged over a billion in false claims.

Erica has taken False Claims Act cases from start to finish and brings this experience to bear each day—whether analyzing challenging legal issues, counseling a client, or meeting with government counsel.

Ms. Hitchings was a member of a procurement fraud litigation team that recovered over $250 million from numerous technology and consulting companies, including Accenture LLP and EMC Corporation, for allegedly defrauding the government through pricing and kickback schemes.

In addition to her fraud enforcement work, as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Erica B. Hitchings coordinated the civil rights enforcement program of her division and defended government agencies in an array of civil litigation, including administrative, constitutional, and environmental matters.  She was also a member of the Office’s Diversity Committee.

Ms. Hitchings has been a frequent speaker on topics of health care fraud and False Claims Act developments, and she designed a training curriculum that will boost the affirmative investigation and litigation skills of government attorneys throughout the country.

Erica B. Hitchings was a member of the Dartmouth College women’s soccer team and spent four years prior to law school teaching history, coaching soccer and basketball, and serving as a social justice program coordinator for teens.