Laboratory Owner Pleads Guilty to $30M Medicare Fraud Scheme

A Florida man pleaded guilty today to his role in a scheme to defraud Medicare by billing for over-the-counter COVID-19 test kits and genetic tests that were ineligible for reimbursement and procured by paying illegal kickbacks and bribes.

According to court documents, Robert M. Clark, 29, of Pompano Beach, was the figurehead owner of Clear Choice Diagnostics Inc. (Clear Choice). Clark and his co-conspirators, including the true owner of Clear Choice, purchased Medicare Beneficiary Identification numbers without lawful authority and then used those numbers to bill Medicare for over-the-counter COVID-19 test kits. Clark and his co-conspirators pay illegal kickbacks and bribes to marketers in exchange for referrals of Medicare beneficiaries for genetic tests. End of
Translation In total, Clark and his co-conspirators caused Clear Choice to submit approximately $30 million in fraudulent claims to Medicare for these tests, of which Medicare paid approximately $15 million.

Clark pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States, to pay illegal health care kickbacks, and to purchase Medicare Beneficiary Identification numbers without lawful authority. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 20 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Assistant Director Michael D. Nordwall of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division; and Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Christian J. Schrank of the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG) made the announcement.

The FBI and HHS-OIG are investigating the case.

Trial Attorney S. Babu Kaza of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section is prosecuting the case.

The Fraud Section leads the Criminal Division’s efforts to combat health care fraud through the Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program. Since March 2007, this program, currently comprised of nine strike forces operating in 27 federal districts, has charged more than 5,400 defendants who collectively have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $27 billion. In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, working in conjunction with HHS-OIG, are taking steps to hold providers accountable for their involvement in health care fraud schemes. More information can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.