Telemarketing Company Operators Sentenced for Roles in Genetic Testing Fraud Scheme

US Department of Justice, November 13, 2025

Two men from Texas and Florida were sentenced today to four years and two years in prison, respectively, for their roles as leaders of a marketing company that solicited Medicare beneficiaries for medically unnecessary genetic testing. The Florida man received an additional two years in prison, to be served concurrently, for his role in falsifying the ownership information in Medicare enrollment documentation for a clinical laboratory.

According to court documents, Paul Wexler, 56, of Spring, Texas, and Paul Bleignier, 64, of Seminole, Florida, operated a telemarketing company that recruited Medicare beneficiaries for cancer genetic (CGx) testing that was medically unnecessary. CGx testing uses DNA sequencing to detect mutations in genes that could indicate a higher risk of developing certain types of cancers in the future. It is not a method of diagnosing whether an individual presently has cancer, and Medicare covers CGx testing in limited circumstances. Further, Wexler, Bleignier and their co-conspirators solicited and received kickbacks in exchange for referring Medicare beneficiaries for CGx testing that was not eligible for Medicare reimbursement. Through the scheme, Wexler and Bleignier caused Medicare to be billed $17.3 million, and they were paid $5.2 million.

While the criminal case for genetic testing fraud was pending, Bleignier opened a clinical laboratory and enrolled it in Medicare. Medicare requires a certification listing anyone with 5% or more ownership interest, but Bleignier used other people’s identities to disguise his involvement. The claims related to that laboratory were further tainted by kickbacks. Bleignier and his co-conspirators billed Medicare for $3,012,156 in claims that were ineligible for reimbursement, and they were paid $916,106.

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