NYC Man Pleads Guilty in $3.5 Million COVID-19 Kickback Scheme

Rivkin Radler LLP
Contact

Rivkin Radler LLP

On February 26, David Weathers of the Bronx pleaded guilty in federal court in New Jersey for his role in a COVID-19 kickback conspiracy. The government had charged Weathers with soliciting kickbacks in return for referrals of COVID-19 test samples, in violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (AKS).

At the other end of the scheme was Metpath Laboratories, a clinical laboratory in Parsippany, New Jersey. Metpath paid Weathers and his co-conspirators for referrals of COVID-19 test samples that were then billed to Medicare and other federal health care programs. The total billed to the government from the ill-gotten test samples was $3.5 million.

Weathers referred more than 5,000 COVID-19 test samples to Metpath and was paid $30 per sample, amounting to kickback payments of about $152,370. Weathers’ company, MedtechCares, Inc., issued invoices to Metpath falsely stating that the payments were legitimate business expenses.

The charge of conspiracy to violate the AKS is punishable by a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or twice the gross profit or loss caused by the offense (here, $7 million), whichever is greatest. Weathers’ sentencing is scheduled for July 10, 2024.

DISCLAIMER: Because of the generality of this update, the information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based on particular situations. Attorney Advertising.

© Rivkin Radler LLP

Written by:

Rivkin Radler LLP
Contact
more
less

PUBLISH YOUR CONTENT ON JD SUPRA NOW

  • Increased visibility
  • Actionable analytics
  • Ongoing guidance

Rivkin Radler LLP on:

Reporters on Deadline

"My best business intelligence, in one easy email…"

Your first step to building a free, personalized, morning email brief covering pertinent authors and topics on JD Supra:
*By using the service, you signify your acceptance of JD Supra's Privacy Policy.
Custom Email Digest
- hide
- hide