NEW YORK – The US Department of Justice said Thursday that clinical lab Genesis Reference Laboratories has agreed to pay $1.2 million to resolve allegations that it violated the Anti-Kickback statute.
According to the DOJ, Orlando, Florida-based Genesis paid illegal kickbacks to healthcare providers in exchange for lab testing referrals.
The government said that between 2019 and 2021, the lab paid the marketing firms Corum Group, Provisional Medical Consultants, and RMC Medical to arrange for and recommend that healthcare providers in Missouri and Texas order lab tests from Genesis. The marketing companies kicked back a portion of the test payments to the referring providers, violating the Anti-Kickback statute.
According to the DOJ, the healthcare providers were paid using purported management services organizations (MSO), which were meant to disguise the kickbacks as investment returns. The settlement resolves allegations that despite knowing of this arrangement, Genesis submitted to Medicare claims for the lab tests ordered by those providers.
Under the terms of the settlement, Genesis has agreed to cooperate with the DOJ's investigation of and litigation against other participants in the scheme.