Jae Lee, former CEO of the now-defunct Northwest Physicians Laboratory in Bellevue, Wash., agreed to pay $1.1 million to resolve a civil case involving the lab allegedly offering referrals in exchange for cash payments, an arrangement commonly known as a kickback, according to a Justice Department news release.
The lab allegedly accepted payments from Vancouver, Wash.-based Molecular Testing Labs and Denver-based Cordant Health Solutions between January 2013 and July 2015 in exchange for referrals of Medicare and Tricare business, according to the release.
A whistleblower in the case will receive 15 percent of the settlement funds.
The criminal case concerning the kickback scheme remains ongoing. Mr. Lee and Molecular Testing Labs Vice President Steve Verschoor have pleaded guilty and are scheduled for sentencing in March 2022. Northwest Physicians Laboratory as a corporate entity was sentenced in May 2021 and ordered to pay $8,114,417 in restitution.