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Minal Patel an Indian-origin laboratory owner based in Georgia, USA, has been sentenced to 27 years in prison for his role in a massive USD 463 million genetic testing scam that targeted Medicare.
Patel, the owner of LabSolutions LLC, was found guilty of submitting fraudulent claims for genetic and other laboratory tests that patients did not actually need.
Patel collaborated with patient brokers, telemedicine companies, and call centers to defraud Medicare beneficiaries through telemarketing calls.
The scheme involved falsely claiming that the patients’ insurance covered expensive cancer genetic tests.
Upon agreement from the beneficiaries, Patel used kickbacks and bribes to obtain signed doctors orders for the tests.
These orders were authorized by telemedicine companies, and the kickbacks were hidden through fraudulent contracts that portrayed the brokers as performing legitimate advertising services.
Between July 2016 and August 2019, LabSolutions submitted claims totaling over USD 463 million to Medicare, including thousands of unnecessary genetic tests.
Medicare paid more than USD 187 million for these claims. Patel personally gained over USD 21 million from Medicare through this fraudulent scheme.
The case was part of Operation Double Helix, a federal law enforcement initiative targeting healthcare fraud, specifically fraudulent genetic cancer testing.
Led by the Health Care Fraud Strike Force under the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, this operation resulted in charges against multiple defendants connected to telemedicine companies and cancer genetic testing labs.
Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI Miami Field Office stated, “Deception, kickbacks, and bribes have no place in the provision of legitimate genetic testing and telemedicine services to patients who need them.”
He emphasized that Patel’s actions had a significant impact on Medicare and its beneficiaries.
An asset forfeiture hearing related to the case is scheduled for August 25. The sentencing of Patel underscores the determination of law enforcement agencies to curb healthcare fraud and protect the integrity of public health insurance programs.
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