June 20, 2012
Read Byron’s complete report here at WFAA
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Two days after a Canadian Private Equity firm buys Orpharma, registered users get email on how to increase sales to fix your gum “pockets”
Valeant buys Orapharma for $312 million.
I have been told there is no real scientific evidence to any of this Arestin stuff. And if I remember right the American Heart Association came out earlier this year and announced there was no real evidence associated with heart disease as you may be told.
I don’t have a clue either way. What I know is a Private Equity firm out of Canada is suggesting high pressure sales tactics the public should be made aware of.Just like the public needs to be aware of the drug companies and their sales techniques - which are many times very dangerous – the public needs to know this.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Ocean Dental–bomb shelter offices more like sweat shops
Ocean Dental advertises for Medicaid and has commercials that attract children with Medicaid. They have a call center that takes their calls. They train these young representatives to not let the caller know they are on the phone with a call center. Ocean Dental wants the patient or parent to be tricked into thinking they are talking to a nurse in the clinic. In all actuality you are speaking to someone who knows nothing about your child, nothing about Medicaid, and nothing concerning dental terminology or illnesses caused by tooth decay. The purpose of the call center is just to real you in onto their schedule, so that they can give you a 7 minute cleaning and take your Medicaid. Someone from the Kentucky, Louisianna, or Ohio area can call and will get the call center in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The representatives in this call center, which is located in a bomb shelter and set up under a bank, has never seen the clinics and do not know what they look like. They have only heard the voices of the people that work the front desk. How sketchy for a dental practice to take advantage of Medicaid patients because they know that these people are low income and welfare based. Something should be done about the quality of that working environment. They seldom have water and have to walk up a large set of steep steps to get to the bathroom which is shared amongst the Ocean Dental reps and the bank workers. Eight hours of work underground with no breaks. This place is worse than a Chinese sweat shop. The best advice from a worker who currently works there is if you care about your child’s dental needs DO NOT take them to Ocean Dental.
CBS and Washington Post Scrub Website of NC Dental Society Article
Thought you read something about the fight going on in North Carolina and Private Equity backed dental corporations - like those owned by Michael and Susan Dell - on the Washington Post website? What about the CBS News website?
Well they are now gone. Scrubbed clean, it appears. At least I can’t find them. The WP article was there on Monday (June 18), and had been since June 6. Today is Wednesday June 20 and it has vanished!
CBS News – June 6, 2012 – NC dentists at odds over management company rules GONE!
Here is the cached version, so you know you weren’t imagining things.
Washington Post June 6, 2012 - Dentist trade group, management companies fight at NC Legislature over tighter rules GONE!
Here is how the WP article started out:
The North Carolina Dental Society is backing a bill to regulate dental service organizations (DSOs) more closely because it says some of these groups are crossing the line and essentially controlling dental practices. State law allows only dentists to own and operate practices and make medical decisions for patients.
Dentists affiliated with these dental service organizations and their patients visited the Legislative Building to oppose a Senate bill containing new rules. They say other dentists are trying to block them from offering services at a fraction of what those in traditional practices now charge. The organizations help control costs by handling things like payroll, human resources and purchasing, backers say.
Proponents of the bill argue DSOs are often out-of-state, investor-owned corporations which come in and exert control in dental practices and get in between the doctor-patient relationship. They argue that some organizations are imposing production quotas and encouraging dentists to persuade patients that they need certain treatments.
Opponents of the bill argue DSOs offer affordable dental care and alleviate the administrative burden of dentists which allows them to spend more time on patients. They argue limiting these organizations will limit access to affordable healthcare and are just an effort by traditional dental practitioners to limit the spread of DSOs in North Carolina.
See the pic above, it was there!
So who is scrubbing the Internet?
OIG requesting public comment on changes in protocol for “self reporting” of fraud
Revising OIG’s Provider Self-Disclosure Protocol Solicitation for Information and Recommendations
AGENCY: Office of Inspector General (OIG), HHS.
ACTION: Notice and Opportunity for Comment.
SUMMARY: This Federal Register notice informs the public that OIG:
(1) Intends to update the Provider Self-Disclosure Protocol (63 FR 58399, October 30, 1998) and
(2) solicits input from the public for OIG to consider in updating the Protocol. DATES: To ensure consideration, public comments must be delivered to the address provided below by no later than 5 p.m. on August 17, 2012.
Background: In 1998, OIG published the Provider Self-Disclosure Protocol (the Protocol) to establish a process for health care providers to disclose potential fraud involving the Federal health care programs. The Protocol provides guidance on how to investigate this conduct, quantify damages, and report the conduct to OIG to resolve the provider’s liability exposure under OIG’s civil money penalty (CMP) authorities.
Over the past 14 years, we have resolved over 800 disclosures, resulting in recovering over $280 million to the Federal health care programs. Through our experience in resolving Protocol matters, we identified areas where additional guidance would be beneficial to the provider community and would improve the efficient resolution of Protocol matters. Specifically, we issued three Open Letters to Health Care Providers to address some of these issues.
First, in 2006 we announced an initiative to encourage disclosure of conduct creating liability under OIG’s antikickback and physician self-referral law CMP authorities.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Limiting Private Equity Dentistry: A Report by Michael Davis, DDS
The full report with all referenced materials and index can be download here. A handy tool for fighting these crimes against humanity.
Report submitted in response to request of
By: Michael Davis, DDS
Background
A Dental Management Service Organization (DMSO) controls the operations of their subordinate dental clinics. They pay staff salaries, including doctors’ salaries. They control the supplies available to each dental clinic. They (not the individual dentist) select the laboratory to be employed for lab services (dentures, crowns, bridges, etc.). They set production quotas and bonuses for individual doctors & individual clinics. They monitor and evaluate each clinical service provided, by each Provider they employ. They control the bank accounts of each individual dental clinic, and sweep those bank accounts on a very regular basis. They pay rent on real estate, of the clinic facilities. They select & maintain dental equipment for each subordinate clinic. They are responsible for the Licensure & Accreditation of each employee. They generally supply the Malpractice Insurance for their Employee Dentists, but often will not purchase “Tail Coverage”.
Support for Limiting Private Equity Dentistry- made to New Mexico Board of Dental Health Care
Report submitted in response to request of
Dr. Robert Gherardi, New Mexico Board of Dental Health Care-
June 13, 2012
By: Michael Davis, DDSBackground
It is important to get up to speed, with specific nomenclature of Interstate Corporate Dentistry, and specific factors of related Case Law.
A Dental Management Service Organization (DMSO) controls the operations of their subordinate dental clinics. They pay staff salaries, including doctors’ salaries. They control the supplies available to each dental clinic. They (not the individual dentist) select the laboratory to be employed for lab services (dentures, crowns, bridges, etc.). They set production quotas and bonuses for individual doctors & individual clinics. They monitor and evaluate each clinical service provided, by each Provider they employ. They control the bank accounts of each individual dental clinic, and sweep those bank accounts on a very regular basis. They pay rent on real estate, of the clinic facilities. They select & maintain dental equipment for each subordinate clinic. They are responsible for the Licensure & Accreditation of each employee. They generally supply the Malpractice Insurance for their Employee Dentists, but often will not purchase “Tail Coverage”.
On paper, the DMSO owns very few hard assets, but actually pulls the strings, of the Practice of Dentistry. Their most valuable assets are their contractual obligations, which have been demonstrated by the Fifth Circuit in re: OCA, Inc. December 12 2008 (07-30430), to represent the “Unlicensed and Unlawful Practice of Dentistry”. Increasingly, we are today seeing more DMSOs, which are offshore registered corporations, versus Delaware incorporation.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Michael and Susan Dell–shame on you!
The Dells want your money and want to provide low quality dental care and even lower quality dentures to Americans and they are willing to spend millions to do it. No, not the Wisconsin Dells, the Texas Dells.
Reports all over the Internet about the fight going on in North Carolina where the Dental Society and the North Carolina Dental board are trying to continue to protect the citizens of the Tar Heel state. Here is one:
Dental group trying to keep dental management firms out of N.C.
And here is a report about the wonderful, fabulous and generous Michael and Susan Dell. Michael and Susan Dell Foundation Give Report
He gives so much to Children’s dentistry in his home state of Texas, it’s proclaimed. Dell’s dad, Alexander, is a dentist.
What Michael and Susan fail to report is that while giving with one hand, they are taking with the other.
How do you feel about Swiss bankers pushing your child’s dental treatment?
Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) has holdings throughout the world, including dental clinics in Phoenix and Mesa, Arizona.
UBS’s subsidiary PDA HoldCo, LLC appears to own and operate Magic Smiles. PDA is the Nasdaq symbol for Perdigao SA, a chicken company in Brazil, owned by UBS. Reports say it is the “Purdue of Brazil”.
Magic Smiles is where at least one parent was referred when Reachout Healthcare America’s mobile dental van preyed upon the children at their Phoenix area school.
I am told, if a child is seen by the Reachout Healthcare America Dental monsters and has private insurance they referred the child to Magic Smiles. RHC must be all warm and cozy with Magic Smiles,
Parents were told by RHC representatives - Magic Smiles will bill their insurance, and Reachout Healthcare will pick up the tab on the rest, or work out a payment plan. It was a payment plan, by the way.
One first graders parents seem to be having problems they can’t get anyone interested in enough to resolve. They are receiving bills for the remainder of the child’s likely over treatment from both, Dr. Ralph Green, the fake owner of the RHC’s mobile van, as well as getting bills from Magic Smiles.
Their calls to Morgan Stanley owned, Reachout Healthcare America have been no help.
[I would like to learn more about this if anyone has anything to share.]
On November 1, 2011, John Momtazee and Chris Ripley of UBS registered PDA HoldCo, LLC. HoldCo is listed as the owner of Magic Smiles, LLC, with Momtazee as the Managing Partner.
There is also a company - PDA Holdings, LLC - registered with the Arizona Secretary of State, which was registered in February 2005. The type of business - “Operation of Dental Clinics”. The company was registered by Craig Frances of Summit Partners. Craig, along John Momtazee are the executives of PDA Holdings, LLC.
Summit Partners once held American Dental Partners in its portfolio.
I can not seem to find a dental licenses for John Momtazee, Chris Ripley or Craig France anywhere. Imagine that.
John Momtazee (see page 3)
PDA Holdings, LLC NPI Record - Arkadius Jaszcz, from Zurich is listed as President on the NPI Record
Thursday, June 14, 2012
Healthy Senior Dental, LTD = ReachOut Healthcare America
I’ve said on here more than once that not only are children in danger, so are grandma and grandpa in the nursing homes.
The same people who mistreated this poor child in AZ are the same names associated with Health Senior Dental, LTD. However, I’m sure nothing like this happens with Health Seniors Dental because they say they have a “perfect legal and ethical background of no liability claims every filed” and “all dental decisions are made by state licensed dentists with perfect ethical records.” (see below)
What are the chances of Dr. Elliot P. Schlang, Dr. Ralph Green and Michael P. Howell having another company unrelated to ReachOut Healthcare and Morgan Stanley? None, nada, zip, zilch, zero.
- Healthy Kids One More Child Foundation - Reachout Health Care America
Michael P. Howell
http://starpas.azcc.gov/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=wsbroker1/names-detail.p?name-id=10810856&type=CORPORATION - Healthy Seniors Dental
Michael P. Howell
http://starpas.azcc.gov/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=wsbroker1/names-detail.p?name-id=L10045016&type=L.L.C. - Healthy Senior Dental website says services are brought to you by Elliot Schlang and others
Report after report claims Congress is investigating- Really?
I’m not seeing any actions being taken other than giving them passes for further abuse of children.
Monday, June 11, 2012
Stop Private Equity owned dental clinics from abusing children for profit and defrauding Medicaid
Thursday, June 07, 2012
State of Connecticut vs. Corporate Dental clinics
Here is the complaint the CT Attorney General brought against a very long list of dentists and their illegal corporations.
STANDING OVATION TO The State of Connecticut!! North Carolina and 48 more states should watch, listen and learn.
Tuesday, June 05, 2012
Four Questions for Insurance Companies–Re: Private Equity Dentistry
It’s getting about time these Malpractice Insurance companies as well as insurance companies such as United Concordia and Guardian answer some questions. I just have three:
1. Why are you knowingly ( and you damn well know it) providing malpractice insurance to illegal operations?
Has no one in the Insurance company ever questioned why they are selling malpractice insurance to a company with 500 dentists working for it? The fact you do it, means you know it.
Yet, when malpractice cases come a callin’ you don’t want to pay up. But you damn well didn’t mind to take the premiums all these years, now did you?
2. Why are you sending patients to dentists who are practicing dentistry illegally?
It’s beyond me why I pay a weekly (however minimum) premium for dental coverage through employment. I am covered with Guardian. I find the name alone highly misleading, since guarding is not even near the top of their to do list.
I recently did a 50 mile radius search of providers on their website for myself. I was excited to see there were four pages -triple columns- listing a 103 dentists in my area. Then I actually read them.
Monday, June 04, 2012
All Smiles Dental Bankruptcy Update 6-4-2012
Wondering what’s happening at All Smiles Dental? Here is their Schedules A thru H. A inside look at the company that Medicaid built.
Doc 71 All Smiles Dental Schedule A-G
Small Smiles Dental Centers - CSHM, LLC’s executives after the so called “sale” 6-1-2012
Wondering who is deciding the dental treatment, deciding what supplies can be ordered and how much the dentists can spend as well as setting the daily quotas for Small Smiles Dental Centers? As of of 6-1-2012 that would the the following people.
| David R. Wilson – (Officer) Chairman, President, and CEO 415 Church Street, Suite 2004 Nashville, TN 37219 david.willson13@comcast.net | |
| Ghassen (Gus) Souri, DDS - Chief Dental Officer 665 Easton Lane Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 gsouri@cshm.com | |
| Steven M. Looney 111 John Street, Suite 1510 New York, New York 10038 | Peale Davies |
| Terrence L. Moore, MD 55 Rock Rimmon Drive Stanford, CT 06903 | MD at Garrison Investment Group – formerly at CIT Group |
| Brad Gardner (Officer)SVP/CFO 618 Church Street, Suite 520 Nashville, TN 37219 | |
Missing in Action is Linda Zoeller’s name on this filing, seems weird not seeing it slapped on the document somewhere… lol
Saturday, June 02, 2012
In 1998, Texas spent $16.5 million on stainless steel crowns, in 2010, 12 years later, Texas taxpayers spent nearly $108 million, up 650% in 12 years!
In 1998, Texas spent $16.5 million on stainless steel crowns, paying for 250,000 thousand of them. In 2010, 12 years later, it spent nearly $108 million, on 700,000 crowns. Up 650% in 12 years! Byron Harris reports on why that could be. Hint: think body snatchers!
June 1, 2012
WFAA
U.S. Senate candidate, Tommy Thompson, is way too interested in North Carolina dental legislation to have clean hands. Just saying…
The front page of Tommy Thompson’s campaign website. Amazing, he and Jeb Bush both called North Carolina House Speaker Thom Tillis in regards to NC’s dental legislation – Senate Bill 655 – House Bill 698.
Tommy Thompson, Wisconsin Senate Candidate, Attacked For Involvement In North Carolina Health Care Bill
Democrats are criticizing Wisconsin U.S. Senate hopeful Tommy Thompson over published reports indicating his involvement with a bill pending in the North Carolina legislature.
[This Tommy Thompson, actually looks like a criminal in my opinion. There is a certain “creep” quality about him. ]
Bloomberg Businessweek reported that Thompson was one of four national GOP luminaries to contact North
Carolina House Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Charlotte, picture right) regarding a bill covering new regulations for dental-management companies. Thompson, a former U.S. health and human services secretary, along with former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist and former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour contacted Tillis about the bill, which has been opposed by private equity companies, Bloomberg BusinessWeek reported.
[Thom Tillis’ crooked smile may not be the only thing crooked about him. I believe he might have a problem with telling the truth as well, which of course is how we know he’s a perfect person to be a politician, right?]
Thompson is competing against former Rep. Mark Neumann, Jeff Fitzgerald, speaker of the state assembly, and businessman Eric Hovade for the Republican Senate nomination and the right to face Democratic Rep. Tammy Baldwin in the November election.
A former Wisconsin governor, Thompson is a partner in a New York private equity firm specializing in the health care sector and a former partner in a Washington law firm specializing in the health care industry. In recent weeks he has come under scrutiny for his acceptance of a board chairmanship at a Florida pharmaceutical company, a post he accepted after saying he was not taking on more corporate board seats. Thompson has served on more than 20 corporate boards since leaving the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2005.
Thompson's spokesman told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel that he did not contact Tillis to lobby but rather to learn about the bill.
[Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire!]
Friday, June 01, 2012
Connecticut AG with Kahunas Files Suit Against Corporations and Management Companies
Standing Ovation!
AG names 28 in civil complaint alleging illegal Medicaid billing scheme
From ConnecticutPlus.com
Jun 1, 2012 - 9:25 AM
HARTFORD, CT - Attorney General George Jepsen has brought a civil action against 28 individuals, dental practices and corporations alleging an elaborate and illegal scheme, which resulted in more than $24 million in fraudulent Medicaid clams over two years in violation of the Connecticut False Claims Act and Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act.
The complaint seeks restitution, treble damages and civil penalties as well as a permanent injunction against the unlawful acts and practices alleged in the complaint.
The individuals named in the State’s complaint are Gary Anusavice (former DDS)of North Kingston, R.I., Mehran Zamani, DDS of Pound Ridge, N.Y. and Stamford; Paul Anusavice of North Grafton, MA; John Gallagher of Manchester, MA; David Wu,DDS of Cheshire and Alphonso Mack,DDS of Bloomfield.
Gary Anusavice and Zamani were arrested last week on federal criminal charges for their alleged involvement in the same billing scheme.
“This is the first case the state has initiated under the Connecticut False Claims Act,” Attorney General Jepsen said. “It gives the State the rightful ability to seek compensation for taxpayers from those who seek to abuse the system with false claims for reimbursements they are not eligible to receive.”
The Attorney General brought the unfair trade practices complaints at the request of Consumer Protection Commissioner William Rubenstein. “The allegations of the complaint are serious, and our consumer laws against unfair and deceptive practices protect state taxpayer dollars whenever medical providers make wrongful claims for reimbursement from the Medicaid program,” Rubenstein said.
Department of Social Services Commissioner Roderick L. Bremby, said “We greatly appreciate the Attorney General’s dedication of both resources and expertise to bring forward this major case of alleged provider fraud. DSS investigators first identified the suspected fraudulent activity and worked with the AG’s Office and federal authorities to develop the case. The role of the Department of Consumer Protection is also important in our collective efforts to root out fraud and abuse on behalf of taxpayers.”
The DSS administers the Connecticut Medical Assistance Program, which includes Medicaid, a joint federal-state program, which provides medical benefits for more than 500,000 low-income Connecticut residents.
The State complaint also names the dental practices and other corporations created or controlled by the various individuals. They include
E.G.A. Mangement, Inc.
Haven Consulting, Inc.
AMZ Consulting, Inc.,
Dental Care of Connecticut, Inc.,
N.B. Dental, Inc.
Electron Marketing, Inc. of Fall River, MA
Dental Group of Stamford, LLC
Dentists Group of Stamford, PC.
Mehran Zamani, LLC,
Mehran Zamani, DDS, PC;
Dental Group of Connecticut, LLC,
Dentists Group of Connecticut, PC;
Dental Group of Waterbury, LLC,
Dentists Group of Waterbury, PC;
Dental Group of Danbury, PC;
Dental Group of New Britain, PC;
Dental Group of Hartford, PC;
Hartford Dental Care, LLC;
Hartford Dental Incorporated, PC;
Arbor Dental Association, LLC;
Alpha Dental Group, PC;
Wintonbury Dental Associates, PC.