Jan. 21–The trial for a Pullman dentist accused of four counts of Medicaid fraud began late Tuesday afternoon in Latah County.
After a lengthy morning spent selecting jurors, attorneys gave their opening statements a little past 2 p.m. in the trial against 69-year-old Alfred Fairbanks.
“Mr. Fairbanks had a plan, and that plan was to get money he was not entitled to,” said Kendal McDevitt, lead deputy attorney general for the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Idaho Attorney General’s office.
Fairbanks, who has been working as the primary dentist for Today’s Dental on Bishop Boulevard in Pullman since 1971, is accused of three felony counts of fraudulently obtaining welfare or public assistance and one felony count of fraudulently presenting false claims for services or supplies.
The charges stem from two of Fairbanks’ patients between Jan. 9, 2009, and May 4, 2010. It is alleged Fairbanks submitted claims to Idaho Medicaid for composite fillings that were reportedly never completed.