Missouri officials have stopped at least $2 million in payments to companies seeking reimbursement for fraudulent genetic tests provided for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, they told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
The blocked money comes after Gov. Mike Parson's announcement last December that he had met with state and federal officials to assemble a task force to root out Medicaid and Medicare fraud.
This summer, Missouri officials warned about genetic testing scams targeting Medicaid and Medicare recipients. Cheek swabs were offered at health fairs, other publics events and by telemarketers in exchange for personal information that could be used for identity theft and fraudulent billing, the newspaper reported.
In many cases, seniors who gave saliva samples never received test results, the newspaper said.
The state has stopped payments to out-of-state labs and marketing companies as it investigates the fraud claims. According to the Post-Dispatch, the amount of fraudulent payments prevented could increase as the probes progress.
Read the newspaper's full report here.
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