Two Companies Settle False Claims Allegations in Healthcare & Mail Delivery Enforcement Push

Key Takeaways

• Two False Claims Act Settlements: Federal officials secured more than $10.6 million combined in two separate enforcement actions involving Medicare billing and international mail delivery performance.
• PCL Kickback Allegations: Patients Choice Laboratories agreed to pay $9.62 million to resolve allegations it submitted medically unnecessary diagnostic tests to Medicare and paid improper referral-based commissions.
• Pandemic-Era Testing Scrutiny: Investigators say PCL exploited COVID-19 specimen collection in long-term care facilities to bill Medicare for respiratory pathogen panels that doctors did not order.
• Mail Delivery Misreporting: Sky Lease paid $1.03 million after allegedly falsifying delivery timestamp scans required for payment under U.S. Postal Service international mail contracts.

Deep Dive

Federal officials have closed out the week with a one-two punch against False Claims Act misconduct, showing us how fraud takes different forms across the government programs millions of Americans rely on. One case centers on pandemic-era laboratory testing that investigators say sidestepped medical necessity and relied on kickbacks to fuel volume. The other involves international mail delivery, where logistics records were allegedly massaged to secure payments for timely performance that didn’t occur.

Both cases come as federal agencies continue their high-tempo enforcement posture on schemes that exploit vulnerable populations or erode trust in basic government services, from health care access to the reliability of U.S. mail abroad.

Medicare Kickbacks and Unnecessary Lab Tests

In Indianapolis, Patients Choice Laboratories agreed to pay $9.62 million after investigators said the company built a business model around Medicare-funded diagnostic testing that patients didn’t actually require.

Federal prosecutors describe a referral pipeline disguised as a marketing relationship. A so-called infection-prevention company received $5,000 a month under what officials call a sham Marketing Services Agreement—a pretext, they say, for securing COVID-19 testing referrals inside long-term care facilities.

The alleged scheme escalated when PCL used those same swabs to bill Medicare for respiratory pathogen panels (RPPs) whether doctors ordered them or not. And in some instances, the government says no COVID-19 test was performed at all, despite claims suggesting otherwise.

Between December 2020 and May 2022 alone:

• The partner company received $1.86 million tied to RPP referrals
• Medicare paid PCL over $6 million for thousands of RPP claims across 43 facilities nationwide

A second allegation involved commission payments totaling at least $372,000 to independent sales representatives. Investigators say those payments were based on testing volume, a direct violation of the Anti-Kickback Statute’s prohibition on paying for patient referrals.

Federal agencies emphasized that these arrangements not only drain public funds but also place older Americans at risk by driving unnecessary testing.

“Kickback arrangements that drive unnecessary testing waste taxpayer dollars and undermine the integrity of our healthcare system,” Tom Wheeler, U.S. Attorney, Southern District of Indiana, stated.

Manipulated Scan Data in International Mail Deliveries

In Miami, air cargo carrier Sky Lease agreed to pay $1.03 million to resolve allegations it falsely reported delivery timestamps for U.S. mail transported abroad under a Postal Service contract.

The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) relies on commercial airlines for secure, on-time delivery of international mail. To be paid, carriers must submit electronic scans that verify exactly when mail is transferred to foreign posts or other authorized recipients.

Sky Lease, the government alleges, knowingly submitted inaccurate scans indicating hand-offs occurred earlier than they truly did, a data integrity lapse that cuts against USPS’s ability to track performance, ensure timely service, and safeguard mail in transit.

Brett A. Shumate, Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division put it simply, “When contractors knowingly fail to provide services for which they have been paid, the Department of Justice will pursue appropriate remedies.”

A Broader Crackdown on Government Program Abuse

Both settlements resolve civil allegations without admissions of wrongdoing. Still, authorities highlighted them as part of a continued effort to defend federal programs at moments of heightened vulnerability, such as the pandemic for Medicare testing and a rapidly evolving global logistics environment for USPS.

In different sectors and through different tactics, each case shows that if federal funds are on the line, accuracy, necessity, and honesty are not optional.

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