Michael Dube, 59, of Johnson City, Tennessee, who formerly owned and operated American Toxicology Labs, was sentenced was to 36 months in federal prison. According to court documents, in March 2011, Michael Dube pleaded guilty in the Eastern District of Tennessee to one count of intentionally omitting information from reports as required under the Controlled Substances Act. As a result of his conviction, the Department of Health and Human Services [HHS] informed Dube in a letter dated June 29, 2012, that he was excluded from participating in any federal healthcare program.
Nonetheless, in May 2013, Michael and his wife, Regan Dube, established American Toxicology Labs [ATL] in Johnson City, Tennessee, with Regan Dube serving as the company’s registered agent, and using the couple’s home address as the principal office and mailing address. ATL then applied to participate in Medicare and Medicaid. On the applications, Regan Dube was listed as the owner of ATL, and Michael Dube’s name and participation in ATL was omitted. ATL conducted urine screens for various entities who represented themselves to be opioid treatment facilities.
Between May 1, 2014, and January 31, 2020, Medicare, Virginia Medicaid, Kentucky Medicaid and TennCare made payments to ATL that totaled approximately $8.5 million. During this time, Michael Dube made employment decisions, negotiated business arrangements with providers, and otherwise participated in the management of ATL. In addition, Michael Dube also received kickback payments from third parties for referring individuals to those third parties for services for which payment was made (in whole or in part) by federal healthcare programs. These payments were deposited in Michael and Regan Dube’s personal checking account in a total amount of $441,646. Regan Dube was previously convicted and sentenced in connection with the scheme.
As a result of their convictions, Regan and Michael Dube will pay a total of $9,015,046, plus interest, divided between special assessments, fines, restitution, and forfeiture. They will have to repay all of the money they received from Medicare and Medicaid programs.
