Do you own your dental practice?

Let’s say you own your patient’s charts, do you own your dental practice?

“We’re finding that these dental practices, under pressure from owners who are not licensed dentists”–Sen.Chuck Grassley.

Senator Grassley says the problem is rooted in the structure of these chains, “I’m finding in this investigation that there are people that know nothing about dentistry are saying you got to see so many people, you got to do so much work for each one, and in a sense, gaming the system,” There are legitimate concerns that children are receiving unnecessary care, sometimes in a traumatic way, and taxpayers are paying for it.”³– Sen. Charles Grassley (R) Iowasaying that it claims that dentists own the practices but in reality they do not have control.¹

The Senator also states, “These “owner dentists” are effectively ghost owners who maintain none of the traditional aspects of ownership of their operations, allowing the corporate investors to have control over clinical operations,” ²

Ghost owners, fake owners, throw away owners, call them what you like.

They are, in truth, are criminals, assisting, aiding and abetting the commission of serious crimes. Crimes against children and crimes against American citizens. Not for free, but for a piece of the pie. They willing lend their name, their professional license and their signature to assist in child abuse, insurance fraud and Medicaid fraud.

On June 21, Robin Lockwood, DDS of the Ocean Dental chain was arrested for Medicaid fraud. She could face up to 10 years in Federal prison.  Robin looks to be about the same age as the Small Smiles dentist below.

As Robin Lockwood, of the Ocean Dental Chain, can attest, when the law comes knocking, they are not going to be knocking on the door at 618 Church Street, Nashville, Tennessee or at NCDR, LLC’s headquarters in Atlanta…

Here is one of Small Smiles Dental Centers “ghost dentist”, that Senator Grassley was referring to – Dr. Jodi B. Kuhn

Doesn’t look much like a criminal does she? She looks like she could be a very loving and protective mom.

Wrong.

She seems to not be loving enough to make sure she is not the next Robin Lockwood facing 10 years of prison time. 

Dr. Jodi B. Kuhn claims to own 7 dental clinics, quite a feat to be so young. She claims to own:

1. SMALL SMILES OF AKRON, LLC - JODI KUHN, DDS AND ELIZABETH GEIER, DMD
2. SMALL SMILES OF CINCINNATI LLC - JODI KUHN, DDS AND ELIZABETH GEIER, DMD
3. SMALL SMILES OF COLUMBUS, LLC - JODI KUHN, DDS AND ELIZABETH GEIER, DMD
4. SMALL SMILES OF DAYTON, LLC - JODI KUHN, DDS ELIZABETH GEIER, DMD
5. SMALL SMILES OF ROSELAWN, LLC - JODI KUHN, DDS ELIZABETH GEIER, DMD
6. SMALL SMILES OF TOLEDO, LLC - JODI KUHN, DDS AND OLIVIA CROOM, DDS
7. SMALL SMILES OF LOUISVILLE, PSC

Small Smiles of Louisville PSC 6-13-2012

  (I see they are still using her rubber stamp signature…and even with all eyes upon you swearing you don’t own the Louisville dental center…this was just filed 2 weeks ago!!)

Dr. Kuhn worked at the Roselawn clinic until October of 2011 when she transferred to the Denver clinic. The Denver clinic was having production issues after a little x-ray scam went belly up and Kuhn is a top producer. Being a top producer, Dr. Kuhn got VIP  tour of the Colorado clinic by Mike Lindley in the flesh. She agreed to the deal and moved to Colorado.

Dr. Elizabeth Kay Geier, another “ghost owner” is the newest co-owner with Dr. Kuhn-there have been others. Dr. Geier comes from the Albuquerque –1 clinic. Geier has been with Small Smiles since August 2007 and was granted a dental license in Ohio in July 2010.

Hey owner dentists, like Jodi Kuhn, Gloria King, Monica Switzer, Randy Ellis, Karen Chu, and others you need to see this. YES, they will throw your butts under the bus in heart beat!!

 

Small Smiles Letter to Senator Grassley 11 29 2011

Small Smiles letter to Senator Grassley's investigators -12 16 2011

 

 

 

^1,2,3 Heath, David. (2012, June 30). “Evidence of overtreatment at dental clinics serving poor children”. Center for Public Integrity - iwatchnews.org

Senators Chuck Grassley and Senator Max Baucus inquire into illegal ownership of dental chains.

Did the Senators get nothing but lies from Small Smiles Dental, Kool Smiles Dental, Reachout Healthcare America, and Aspen? I'll let you decide.

Small Smiles Dental attorney's, King and Spalding, respond to Senator Grassley’s Investigators - November 29, 2011

Second response letter from Small Smiles Dental Centers to Senator Grassley’s Investigators - December 16, 2011

Kool Smiles Dental responds to Senators Grassley and Baucus Inquiry - February 3, 2012

Reachout Healthcare America responds to Senators Grassley and Baucus inquiry- February 23, 2012

Reachout Healthcare America's second response to Senators Grassley and Baucus - March 22, 2012

Aspen Dental response to Senators Grassley and Baucus inquiry -February 13, 2012

Aspen Dental's second response to Senators Grassley and Baucus - April 18, 2012

Maybe Small Smiles Dental Center “Owners” Should-Sell-Sell-Sell

Dentists who supposedly own the 67 Small Smiles dental centers that Church Street Health Management says they personally don’t own, could just start selling off your assets, right?.

In the Church Street Health Management-Small Smiles Dental Chapter 11 Bankruptcy filings Martin McGahan, in a sworn Affidavit, stated:

“The dental centers are owned by licensed dentist” (p.2)

He further states CSHM simply:

“…provide “dental practice management services” to 67 dental centers serving low income and underprivileged families in 22 states…”(p1) and have, ..“As of the Petition Date, the Debtors, through EEHC, Inc. (“EEHC”) had
approximately 72 full-time, 2 part-time, and 2 “as needed” employees (collectively, the  “Employees”).” (p.3)

I suppose you owners could find another company to do your payroll and other bookkeeping, since Church Street Health Management is a bit pricey:

“Owner Dentists” banded together and won $130 million

Had I read this in 2007 or even 2008 I might have believed the whole scenario laid out in the lawsuit between Park Dental Group and American Dental Partners. But knowing what I know today I think it’s a case of “owner dentists” going rogue, but I could be completely wrong. 
In 2007 a Minnesota jury awarded a group of dentist $130 million dollars.  The group alleged American Dental Partners, Inc. had overstepped its bounds when it came to the treatment of their patients.  Disappointingly, the jury failed to address the claims of a corporation/non-dentist practicing dentistry without a license.  However I suspect one could say the monetary award spoke volumes.

I guess it could be a case of the smaller dental group decided to become their own “management” company and screw the Wall Street folks. But as long as dentists own the clinics, are making the decisions and delivering the treatment I don’t see a need for real concern, do you?

Star Tribune
December 13, 2007

In a landmark verdict likely to draw praise from those opposed to the growing corporate presence in medicine, a jury ordered a Massachusetts company to pay $130.6 million to a group of Twin Cities dentists who claim the company interfered with their delivery of care to patients.

A Hennepin County jury ruled Wednesday in favor of PDG PA, a professional association of 115 dentists who operate the Park Dental and Dental Specialist clinics. The dentists had accused American Dental Partners Inc., a public company to which they had outsourced most of the administrative side of the business, of overstepping its legal authority and granting itself grossly excessive fees.

[I’m wondering exactly what that grossly amount was, 100% as with CSHM]

The ruling and the mammoth award will have far-reaching implications for thousands of clinics and hospitals nationwide that in recent years have outsourced the management of their business operations to corporations that aren't owned by medical professionals, industry analysts said.

"It puts in sharp relief the tension that exists in the health care industry over who controls the practice of medicine and dentistry," said Joseph Anthony, an attorney with Anthony, Ostlund & Baer, which represented the dentists. "Will it be the doctors or will it be non-doctor-trained service providers?"

After a month long trial, American Dental and a subsidiary were found liable for, among other charges, breach of contract, breach of good faith and defamation. Late Wednesday, the jury ordered the company to pay $88.3 million in damages, then added $42.3 million in punitive damages on Thursday.

American Dental, based in Wakefield, Mass., said in a written statement that it is evaluating the verdict. Officials did not return repeated telephone calls. Shares of the company tumbled Thursday to $4.62 a share from $14.34 a share a day earlier.

The verdict stems from a dispute over a 1996 agreement in which an American Dental subsidiary, PDHC Ltd., agreed to provide the dentists with money for expansion as well as "non-dental administrative services," such as accounting, lab services and equipment maintenance. In return, the dentists agreed to pay a portion of their billing revenue to American Dental in the form of a "service fee."

[Honestly, I’ve got to give a huge thumbs up to whom ever “spun” this one.  There are lessons to be learned here, I’m sure]