A research project director sued a county-operated hospital where she oversaw a drug research program, claiming that the hospital violated the False Claims Act by submitting false statements to the federal government for the purpose of obtaining grant funds. The county argued that, like states, local governments were not "persons" under the False Claims Act. Prior case law had excluded states from prosecution under the False Claims Act on the basis that states cannot be subjected to the punitive, treble damages allowed under the Act. The United States Supreme Court held that local governments are "persons" under the False Claims Act and, therefore, the municipal corporation that operated the hospital in this case could be sued.