No Halo News · Sourced development
Miracle-Ear Foundation and affiliated company settle federal claims alleging they were ineligible for Paycheck Protection Program loans
Miracle-Ear Foundation and for-profit affiliate Miracle-Ear, Inc. agreed to pay a combined $6,473,222 to resolve federal False Claims Act allegations involving three Paycheck Protection Program loans. The Justice Department alleged that the entities falsely certified eligibility because their affiliation with multinational parent Amplifon S.p.A. caused the corporate group to exceed the program’s employee limit. The Foundation received a $58,100 PPP loan; the other two loans, totaling $3.924 million, went to Miracle-Ear, Inc. The settlement contains no admission of liability.
Status matters. This page records a sourced development, not a completed No Halo investigation. An allegation is not a finding. Dismissals, settlements, judgments, corrections and final outcomes remain distinct.
Donor relevance
Why this matters
The settlement raises donor-relevant questions about eligibility review and compliance controls at a charity affiliated with a large multinational business. It also represents a substantial recovery of pandemic-relief funds, although the government announcement does not state how much of the settlement will be paid from Foundation assets rather than by the affiliated company.
Attribution
Who reported or established this
The allegations were made by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin and the Small Business Administration. The underlying qui tam cases were filed by Blockquote, Inc. and Mary Denler.
Evidence limits
What remains unverified
No Halo has not independently established that the loan certifications were false, that Foundation personnel knowingly supplied inaccurate information, or how the $6.47 million payment is divided between the Foundation and Miracle-Ear, Inc. The settlement is not a judicial finding of liability.
Right of reply
Organization response
Miracle-Ear Foundation and Miracle-Ear, Inc. agreed to the settlement but did not admit liability. No separate public response from the Foundation was located in the consulted material.
Classification
How No Halo records this event
Event type: Settlement. Current state: Resolved. No Halo preserves the current procedural state rather than treating every mention as a finding.
Published October 16, 2026 · Last verified October 20, 2026. See an error or a later outcome? Submit a correction or right of reply.