A woman in Pennsylvania who reportedly falsely claimed to hold an expanded function dental assistant license and worked briefly for three dentists has been arrested, according to a story published on April 7 in the Bucks County Courier Times. Rose … Read More
An Arizona doctor has copped to cooking the books in a multi-million dollar health insurance fraud case. Linh Cao Nguyen, a Peoria physician, entered a guilty plea on March 19 to hoodwinking healthcare benefit programs out of a hefty $3.7 … Read More
A dental practice in the U.K. declined to take a man who weighed about 320 lbs as a new patient because he exceeded the weight limit of its dental chairs, according to a story recently published in Norwich Evening News. … Read More
Gov. Jim Justice has approved a bill that aims to make dentures more accessible to Medicaid recipients. With Justice’s signature Tuesday, House Bill 4933 will become effective July 1. Medicaid currently covers diagnostic, preventative and restorative dental services, with the … Read More
Centene appears to be crying foul to Texas over the state’s scoring of its Medicaid proposal. Asked for her reaction at Barclay’s Global Healthcare Conference last month to unfavorable news, CEO Sarah London said they were “disappointed” and have received … Read More
AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Texas Health and Human Services accidentally removed 350 seniors from the state’s Medicare Savings Program, the agency confirmed, costing some lower income Texans as much as $200 a month out of their Social Security checks. Last summer, … Read More
An impossible task. That’s what Randy Fritz was faced with in the summer of 1999. As executive assistant to then-Texas Health Commissioner William “Reyn” Archer III, Fritz had 10 months to create from scratch a new statewide health insurance program … Read More
The patient’s teeth appeared to be well cared for, but dentist James Mancini did not like the look of his gums. By chance, Mancini knew the man’s physician, so he raised an alert about a potential problem—and a diagnosis soon … Read More
XENIA — A Greene County woman is looking for answers after being left at a standstill with her health insurance company. As reported on News Center 7 at 5:30, Xenia resident Veronica Ray learned she lost her United Healthcare insurance … Read More
An owner of a durable medical equipment (DME) company was sentenced Tuesday to three and a half years in prison and ordered to forfeit $1.8 million for his participation in a healthcare fraud kickback conspiracy. According to court documents and … Read More
PHOENIX — Two business partners were recently indicted for allegedly attempting to defraud Arizona’s Medicaid program of over $9.4 million through their company. Kenneth Harrison, 44, and Courtney Haywood, 38, both of Las Vegas, Nevada, face 30 felony counts related … Read More
Legislation funds oral health training, dental research programs President Joe Biden signed a $1.2 trillion spending bill into law March 23 that will fund the government through Sept. 30, finalizing the overdue second tranche of bills and avoiding the threat … Read More
A former employee at a dental practice in New York has been accused of stealing more than $400,000 from the business, according to a story published March 26 in Syracuse.com. Carla Fisher-Schmitt, 44, was charged with felony grand larceny for … Read More
A new Forbes Advisor study shedding light on Americans’ top financial worries has revealed Texas has the fifth highest health care costs in the nation. Forbes Advisor’s annual report compared all 50 states and Washington, D.C. across nine different metrics … Read More
The ADA is responding to a request for information on Medicare Advantage data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services by emphasizing the importance of increasing data transparency and reporting from insurers. A letter from the ADA to CMS … Read More
A symposium hosted by the American Dental Association in June will equip dental professionals with the knowledge and skills they need to play a pivotal role in addressing chronic health conditions. Dentistry’s Role in Complete Health, taking place June 21-22 … Read More
TYLER, Texas — A partnership with Tyler ISD and Tyler Junior College Dental Hygiene Program has allowed several local elementary students to receive needed dental care at no charge. Clarkston, Douglas, and Owens elementary school students have all benefited from … Read More
Former Georgia Insurance Commissioner John W. Oxendine on Friday pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and agreed to pay $699,864 in restitution to health insurers in connection with an alleged money laundering scheme. Mr. Oxendine, of Johns … Read More
A Maryland firm that oversees the nation’s largest independent network of primary care medical practices is facing a whistleblower lawsuit alleging it cheated Medicare out of millions of dollars using billing software “rigged” to make patients appear sicker than they … Read More
NILES, MI – A Niles couple pleaded guilty to two felony counts each of Medicaid fraud, according to a Thursday announcement by Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel. Gregory Barney, owner of the Highland Counseling Center in Niles and a licensed … Read More
LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Police arrested a southern Indiana man for allegedly running a dentist office without a license. Seymour Police said on Tuesday, officers received a tip about 31-year-old Fredy Felipe Pascual, alleging he was doing dental work “possibly … Read More
The U.S. Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights appears poised to re-implement its audit program that randomly checks covered entities and business associates for compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. The HIPAA compliance audit program … Read More
In 2018, when Mike DeWine was Ohio’s attorney general, he began investigating an obscure corner of the health care industry. He believed that insurers were inflating prescription drug prices through management companies that operated as middlemen in the drug supply … Read More
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — When Hunter Morgan bought an optometry practice in Southern California three years ago, one of the first things he did was start seeing patients who use Medicaid, the government-funded health insurance program for low-income people. The … Read More
MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. (WCBD) – A Mount Pleasant man has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison for his role in what authorities called one of the largest Medicare fraud schemes in history. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the … Read More
ARLINGTON — The Attorney General’s Office announced that Dr. Catherine A. Cech, 64, of Arlington, was arraigned Monday on one felony count of prescription fraud. The investigation was initiated when investigators received information alleging that Cech, a licensed dentist with … Read More
WASHINGTON (AP) — As Salvatore LoGrande fought cancer and all the pain that came with it, his daughters promised to keep him in the white, pitched roof house he worked so hard to buy all those decades ago. So, Sandy … Read More
Benevis, a leading dental healthcare and orthodontics delivery organization committed to providing quality care to underserved communities, announces the release of its report, “The Impact of Neglected Adolescent Dental Care on Adult Health.” In support of World Oral Health Day … Read More
Lawrence Duffy, DMD, a dentist in Florida, agreed to voluntarily relinquish his dental license following using general anesthesia without a permit. In 2019, Dr. Duffy failed to record the route of administration, dosage, time and sequence of a general anesthetic … Read More
A Democratic legislator in South Dakota has raised concerns about Republican Governor Kristi Noem’s recent Texas trip for dental treatment, coupled with her participation in a video endorsing the dental practice. State Senator Reynold Nesiba has called for an inquiry … Read More
A licensed nurse practitioner in New Jersey, Jean Wilson, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud. According to court documents, Wilson owned two purported telemedicine companies, Advantage Choice Care (ACC) and Tele Medcare LLC, as … Read More
A man from St. Louis, Missouri on Thursday admitted using his brother’s identity to fraudulently obtain about $31,700 from the Missouri Medicaid Program. Christopher J. Spencer, 46, waived indictment by a grand jury and pleaded guilty to five counts of … Read More
Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin announced the state will receive more than $191,000 as part of a $25 million national settlement with respiratory device supplier Lincare Holdings Inc. over alleged Medicaid fraud. Publicly traded Lincare, based in Clearwater, Florida, was … Read More
BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — The 7 News I-Team has received the letter sent to the New York State Office of Professional Development, by State Senator Patrick Gallivan, calling for a full investigation of Dr. Richard Charlap. Charlap was the focus … Read More
The Clinical Laboratory Improvement Act (CLIA) allows CMS to regulate all laboratory testing (except research) done in U.S. physician offices and other health care facilities. As an ongoing requirement of that law, CMS collects laboratory data from physicians. In November, … Read More
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) – A bill currently in the Senate could make it easier for dental professionals to practice across state lines. HB 2453, otherwise known as the Dentist and Dental Hygienists Licensure Compact, would establish an interstate compact that … Read More
(ABC 6 News) – People across the Austin-area are learning some shocking news about a former dentist in town. Over the last two weeks, former patients of Schmitt Family Dentistry learned that, back in June of 2023, practitioner Travis Schmitt … Read More
AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Health and Human Services Commission said Monday a potential disclosure of health and sensitive personal information could’ve impacted nearly 3,400 people living in or near several East Texas communities. According to the HHSC, the state … Read More
Minnesota legislators are considering a bill that would allow the state to join an interstate compact to alleviate workforce shortages. The Dentist and Dental Hygienist Compact is a legal agreement between states that aims to create reciprocity and reduce the … Read More
The U.S. House of Representatives approved the Action for Dental Health Act of 2023, which reauthorizes the workforce and access-promoting program through 2028. The bill, HR 3843, passed March 7 with a vote of 391-32. The Action for Dental Health … Read More
