Florida Man Gets 14 Years in Genetic Testing Fraud Scheme

The owner and operator of telemarketing and telemedicine companies faces 14 years behind bars after pleading guilty to healthcare and wire fraud and evading taxes.

Through information filed Feb. 3, Marc Sporn of Delray Beach was accused of creating an elaborate scheme that cost Medicare more than $20 million dollars.

According to court documents, Sporn owned and operated CPL Media Group Inc., Medipak, LLC, Real Time Physicians LLC, 24 HR Virtual MD LLC, Medtech Worldwide Inc., New World Holdings Inc., and Ins Cov LLC. The government alleged that he used these companies to market medically unnecessary cancer genetic tests to Medicare beneficiaries and to sell prescriptions for these tests to labs in exchange for kickbacks and bribes.

In addition, Sporn operated and controlled, through nominee owners, Medi Biotech, LLC and Walmol Holdings, LLC, a shell corporation. It was alleged he used Medi Biotech to market compounded prescription creams to customers and that pharmacies and labs associated with Medi Biotech filled the prescriptions, billed the customers’ insurance, and paid Sporn kickbacks.

According to court filings, laboratories agreed to pay Sporn as much as 45 percent of the gross revenues paid by Medicare in exchange for his recruitment and referral of patients, tests, and doctors’ orders to labs, regardless of whether they were medically necessary. The orders were written by doctors who had contracted with the telemedicine companies, even though they had no prior relationship with the patients and were not treating them nor conduct a proper telemedicine visit. Sporn is alleged to have recruited patients by targeting them with telemarketing campaigns.

He allegedly used Walmol Holdings to avoid paying more than $1.6 million in personal income taxes by diverting millions of dollars through the company’s accounts. He then used the money to purchase a $45,000 Rolex watch and diamond jewelry, classic and exotic cars, two yachts valued at more than $2 million and other luxury items. He also evaded paying more than $2.5 million in personal income taxes for other years dating back to 2000.

When the IRS attempted to collect back taxes from Sporn, he tried to conceal assets by transferring property to trusts and individuals and by repeatedly opening and closing companies, among other things. In addition to the prison term, Sporn was ordered to pay more $24,045,779.00 joint and several restitution, and more than $4.2 million in restitution to the IRS.

The federal government has been cracking down in cases involving genetic testing fraud. In March, twelve South Floridians were arrested and charged in cases involving genetic testing and DME fraud. And, as far back as 2019, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS OIG) sent out an alert about a fraud scheme similar to the one Sporn pleaded guilty to.

Our team of highly skilled attorneys and consultants can assist before you become the focus of an investigation and will aggressively defend you should you become the target of one. Give us a call at 305-358-4500, or send an email to info@vitalehealthlaw.com and let’s discuss how we might be able to assist you.