Seven executives of a genetic testing company were recently indicted by a federal grand jury in Denver for allegedly fraudulently receiving $40 million from state and federal health care systems.
The seven executives reside across the country. They used two labs in Colorado to perform genetic tests, which federal prosecutors allege were unnecessary, improperly obtained and illegally charged.
A key aspect of the scheme, as described in the indictment, was to pay telemarketers to call elderly patients, who were likely Medicare beneficiaries, and to provide “medical needs.'' solicitation or acceptance of genetic testing “through false pretenses or representations, regardless of gender.”
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The seven are:
- Ronald King, 51, CEO of Tesis Labs LLC., formerly of Berlin, New Hampshire, currently residing in Bangor, Maine
- Victor Roiter, 55, Tesis Labs Vice President of Marketing, Sunny Isles Beach, Florida
- Tina Wellman, 51, Chief Operating Officer, Tesis Labs, Mayfield, New York
- Adam Scholl, 55, Beneficiary and Business Consultant for Tesis Labs, Dunedin, Florida
- Robert O'Sullivan (age 55, resident of Lake Sherwood, California)
- John Gauteau, 59, of Temecula, California
- Bradley Edson, 66, of Mesa, Arizona
According to the indictment, Mr. Sullivan and Mr. Gauteau partnered with the first four companies, which had ownership interests in a separate company, Autumn Partnership LLC, as a “proof of concept” for Tesis' business model. Edson owns an entity that is part of Tesis LLC, as shown in communications between the defendants used as evidence in the lawsuit.
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According to the indictment, Mr. King, Mr. Reuter, Mr. Wellman, and Mr. Scholl conspired to promote Medicare and Colorado through various means, including paying kickbacks and bribes to marketing companies that obtained referrals for medically unnecessary genetic testing. Conspired to defraud Medicaid. Patients were also contacted directly through telemedicine conferences. Marketers also went so far as to “chase” primary care physicians to sign test orders. In addition, Tesis employees and its India-based billing company also “modified” physician orders by adding or changing diagnosis codes. prosecutor's argument.
“These health care providers never test beneficiaries, typically speak with each beneficiary for only a few minutes, rely on beneficiary self-reported medical information requested by telemarketers, and do not provide any information to beneficiaries. The results of the genetic test were not used to treat or diagnose the beneficiary; “The orders were directed primarily for the financial benefit of the co-conspirators and their associates,” the indictment states.
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The group, which includes Mr. King and Mr. Wellman, also operates its own “call center” in New York to “contact senior citizens directly to solicit participation in genetic testing,” as stated in the indictment. was established.
Finally, prosecutors say King, Reuter, and Wellman conspired to launder the proceeds of the conspiracy through accounts in a “shell entity” that allowed the three to pay privately from internal funds. claims.
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Tesis Labs LLC owned and operated Lafayette-based Claro Scientific Laboratories, Inc. and Aurora-based 303 Diagnostics LLC. According to the indictment, Claro was already an independent clinical laboratory registered with Medicare when Tesis acquired Medicare in January 2020. Tesis acquired 303 Diagnostics around December 2020, when the facility was located in Denver and enrolled in Medicare. We moved to Aurora in October 2021.
Along with a Texas lab called Alliance DX LLC, three organizations made up the Tesis Labs testing lab.
The parent company changed its name to Tesis Biosciences in 2021.
The seven defendants made their initial appearances in Denver federal court from August 26 to September 5. Dr. King's trial is scheduled for March 2025.
