A federal grand jury in the Middle District of Florida has indicted Marek Rex Vernon Harrison, a 61-year-old U.K. citizen residing in Plant City, Florida, for his alleged involvement in a telehealth fraud scheme targeting Medicare.
According to the indictment, Harrison was the true owner and manager of CTD Network LLC (CTD), a company that presented itself as a telemedicine provider. The company is accused of employing medical professionals to authorize prescriptions for genetic tests—including those assessing cancer risk—through telehealth consultations. These consultations were conducted for Medicare beneficiaries referred by marketing companies or laboratories. The indictment alleges that these providers had no prior relationship with the patients and did not use the test results for treatment purposes.
The indictment further states that under Harrison’s direction, CTD billed Medicare for services that were either medically unnecessary or not provided as claimed. The total amount of false claims submitted exceeded $2.7 million, with Medicare paying out more than $600,000 on these claims.
Additionally, part of the alleged scheme involved submitting falsified Medicare enrollment documents to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to hide Harrison’s involvement with CTD. CMS requires disclosure of all individuals with significant ownership or control interests and whether they have faced legal actions. It is alleged that CTD submitted forms listing other people as owners or managers while concealing Harrison’s 2019 bank fraud conviction.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe for the Middle District of Florida; Special Agent in Charge Matthew Fodor of the FBI’s Tampa Field Office; Special Agent in Charge Douglas DePodesta of the FBI’s Chicago Field Office; and Deputy Inspector General for Investigations Christian J. Schrank of HHS-OIG announced the charges.
The FBI and HHS-OIG are conducting the investigation into this case.
Acting Assistant Chief Catherine Wagner and Trial Attorney Miriam Glaser Dauermann from the Justice Department’s Fraud Section are leading prosecution efforts.
The Justice Department's Fraud Section heads health care fraud enforcement through its Health Care Fraud Strike Force Program, which since 2007 has charged over 5,800 defendants who together have billed federal health care programs and private insurers more than $30 billion across nine strike forces operating in 27 districts nationwide. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services works alongside HHS-OIG to hold providers accountable in such schemes; additional details can be found at www.justice.gov/criminal-fraud/health-care-fraud-unit.
Authorities remind that an indictment is only an allegation and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
