Discussion:
Barbara is suspected of fraudulently billing for services and admits that she has done so. According to the False Claims Ace, Barbara committed a crime because she was billing for services that didn't really happen.
Being the assistant manager of operations, Barbara would be terminated immediately with charges pending. I say pending because we're not sure how much has been padding. Proper company protocol will take place on behalf of Barbara. Barbara was committing a serious criminal charge. It is good that this was finally caught, it would be bad on the other hand because the company would have to be reimbursed for the services that did not really happen to the clients. When then makes the company lose money and possible future clients.
Because the company had no idea about this problem, I feel that they should not be held liable. What I would like to know is why did it take 4 years to catch this problem. They should have had a system in place that checks for possible errors or services that did not actually happen. At my job, we have a 3 steps system for billing services like this. I feel that they need to redevelop the department and make sure that they are following all the proper steps for all billing services. Barbara should be held liable and should face all charges.