DOJ: Plano lab owner submitted $4 million in fake COVID-19 test reimbursement claims
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PLANO, Texas - A North Texas man pleaded guilty to federal charges after he was caught submitting nearly $4 million in fraudulent claims for over-the-counter COVID test kits.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, 55-year-old Damon Roberts is the owner of JDS Labs in Plano.
He admitted that he and others, including some medical providers and healthcare workers with access to patient information, shared Medicare beneficiary information so that JDS Labs could bill Medicare for over-the-counter COVID-19 tests.
Federal prosecutors said Roberts submitted nearly $4 million in fake claims and received about $1.7 million in government reimbursements.
He paid his co-conspirators each time the patient information led to a reimbursement. But he tried to conceal the nearly $150,000 in kickbacks with passthrough arrangements and cash payments.
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On Thursday, Roberts pleaded guilty to conspiracy to solicit or receive kickbacks for referrals to a federal health care program.
He now faces up to five years in federal prison.
His sentencing is set for late March.