June 8, 2012
Monday, June 11, 2012
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.
Bloomberg’s Private Equity in Dentistry Series Gives New Meaning to “Drill Baby Drill” for 2012 Republican Campaign
May 16, 2012
By Sydney P. FreedbergDental Abuse Seen Driven by Private Equity Investments
May 30, 2012
Republicans Target Dental Bill That Private Equity Hates
By Sydney P. Freedberg and Jason Kelly - May 30, 2012 11:01 PM CTThe likes of Jeb Bush, William Frist, Tommy Thompson and Haley Barbour aren’t typically heard from in the office of Thom Tillis, the Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives.
Yet the four Republican Party stalwarts, none of them a Carolina resident, have contacted Tillis’s office over a little- known bill to toughen state regulation of dental companies. They’ve been joined by Grover Norquist, the Tea Party favorite and anti-tax crusader who heads the Washington, D.C.-based Americans for Tax Reform.
“It’s not terribly common to have these types of names” intervening on a state bill, said Jordan Shaw, a spokesman for Tillis.
Their interest marks the Tar Heel State as the front line in a national struggle over dental management companies. Fueled by Wall Street money, at least six such firms are under scrutiny by two U.S. senators and authorities in five states over allegations that they soak taxpayers through excessive Medicaid billings, abuse patients via needless treatments and run afoul of laws that say only licensed dentists can practice dentistry.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Closing Day for Church Street Health Management-Small Smiles Dental Centers
No, not closing the doors, but I expect that soon.
Today was supposed to be the closing day for the sale of Church Street Health Management.
Yes, Church Street Health Management, LLC will now become CSHM, LLC with basically the same Private Equity Investors as before, CIT Corporation and others. The Carlyle Group swears they are out of it, I’m not sure. They say the “exited” in the last year. It must have been in the last 6 months!
The investors basically sunk another $25 million dollars into the company in February to keep it afloat while it “reorganized”. Whatever that means. No one else wanted to jump on the sinking ship so …. it became the property of the same folks. If they aren’t pissed, they should be.
Since then they have ended up the subject of at least two Bloomberg reports. As usual they never come out looking good. But, honestly, how could they? They whole bunch are dirty rotten scoundrels.
Abusing children and raping taxpayers is NOT exactly the best way to prosperity. These folks are so bad, even Don Meyer, who is notorious for selling snake oil to American’s can spin this one. All he can say is “we are providing care to the underserved”. He says it over and over and over… If you listened to them, there would be no sex at all, unless you’re raped.
Still doesn’t it make it so. The once “underserved” are the most “overserved” in America when it comes to dental care these days.
I think things may be getting worse for the CSHM, LLC. I know, it’s hard to believe things could get worse-Bankrupt, Congressional Investigations, Corporate Integrity Agreement, and so forth-but they can.
The first few days of the new ownership is probably gonna suck!
According to sources, Met Life and United Concordia/Tricare are canceling their contracts with Small Smiles Dental Centers.
If true, revenues just went to hell, again. If they couldn’t make it before, they certainly can’t make it now.
PS – If asked to sign some kind of Transition, Separation, Confidential, Severance and General Agreement, in exchange for a week’s pay, I would have an attorney look it over. Personally, unless they removed sections 4, 7, 8, 13 and clarified in writing why it says it’s governed by the state of Tennessee, and why Church Street Health Management is a “Released Party”, I wouldn’t sign it, no way, no how… Just saying…
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Dr. Jian-Fu Zhu, loose cannon!
Someone needs to stop this dentist before he kills someone. Other’s have come forward with similar stories, none willing to speak out of course.
Detroit Free Press - Ashton's story: Michigan Child Nearly Dies
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Ashton Adler is the subject of "Ashton's story: Michigan Child Nearly Dies," in which his mother describes complications he had with dental sedation. / Photos by JARRAD HENDERSON/Detroit Free Press
Rebekah and Jason Adler and their sons Gabe, 5, and Ashton, 7, at their Royal Oak home.
The case of a 6-year-old Royal Oak boy whose family charges he was unresponsive for nearly six unsettling hours after a dental sedation procedure last year is under investigation by Michigan health care regulators.
The allegations by the family of Ashton Adler, now 7, involves one of Michigan's few known cases involving a child experiencing complications from dental sedation. The incident is the subject of a new video by a national nonprofit organization that monitors deaths and serious complications of children undergoing such procedures.
"Ashton's story: Michigan Child Nearly Dies," is a video interview with Rebekah Adler, the mother of the boy interviewed by the Raven Maria Blanco Foundation. The Virginia-based foundation, which has tracked 45 pediatric sedation deaths around the country, recently led its website with the Adlers' story to show parents and caregivers to "trust their instincts" and "walk away" if they question sedation procedures, Executive Director Nicole Cunha said.
The Adlers contacted the foundation after reading a February report in the Free Press on controversies over state regulation of dental sedation. The article described the national controversy over pediatric sedation deaths and regulatory measures under debate by Michigan and other states to increase training and safety in the field.
Michigan has had no known sedation deaths, according to a spokesman for the Michigan Dental Association. And there have been very few complaints involving sedation dentistry practices, said Rae Ramsdell, chief of the Bureau of Health Professions with the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
The foundation's video does not name the dentist, but the couple's complaint to Michigan regulators lists him as Troy pediatric dentist Dr. Jian-Fu Zhu. The complaint, which the Alders filed June 8, 2011, with Michigan's licensing department, is under investigation, Ramsdell said. No formal charges have been filed.
Zhu declined to comment. He referred a call from the Free Press to Lynda Farnen, a Roseville attorney.
"We're involved in an ongoing investigation," she said. "Under those circumstances, there's very little I'm going to say. Dr. Zhu believes that all the care and treatment he rendered was appropriate and within the standard of care." She declined to answer other questions.
The state website lists no violations on Zhu's record.
Credentials seemed fine
The Adlers say a brochure they picked up in his office on the day of the visit gave them confidence they made the right choice.
Zhu also came on good recommendations from their family dentist, the Adlers said.
The brochure identified Zhu as a board-certified pediatric dentist and clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at the Wayne State University School of Medicine, as well as a previous co-director of the pediatric residency program at Children's Hospital of Michigan in Detroit.
WSU medical school records show that Zhu has not worked there since 2005.
He left Children's Hospital several years ago, a spokeswoman said.
He remains a board-certified dentist, a credential that indicates he passed a tough national exam.
Pediatric dentists undergo at least one month of hospital or office training with an oral surgeon or dental anesthesiologist that allows them to perform light or moderate sedation techniques -- drugs that help people rest during a procedure but that allow them to respond to voice commands easily.
In their complaint to the state, the Adlers say they were told to give two different sedation drugs to their son, a skinny 47-pounder at the time, before undergoing a root canal and five fillings.
The Adlers claim that:
• They were left to give the drugs to their son on their own. When Zhu returned and found Ashton apparently had spit out some of the medicine, Zhu gave them a third cup of medicine to give to their son and then left them alone again. The Adlers say they don't know which medicine and how much of it was in the third cup, requiring emergency room doctors at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak to monitor Ashton for more than four hours to observe his breathing and vital signs because he was so listless when they arrived.
• Their son was unmonitored for long stretches throughout the dental visit and was sent home asleep. A staffer for Zhu told them, "We can't be with our patients from start to finish of a sedation process," Rebekah Adler said.
• Zhu didn't awaken the boy before sending him home, did not check his vital signs and gave the parents no reason to think there was a problem.
The allegations, if true, would violate standards of the American Dental Association and the American Society of Pediatric Dentistry, of which Zhu is a member.
The guidelines require "no administration of sedating medication without the safety net of medical supervision." They also say that children must recover to pre-sedation levels of consciousness before discharge; that dentists must document the name and dosages of medications given, and if children receive different sedative drugs simultaneously, they might need more monitoring before discharge. The guidelines say a child should be able to remain awake for "at least 20 minutes when placed in a quiet environment."
Before Jason Adler left Zhu's office the day of the visit, he said he asked for his son's X-rays and medical records. He received only a bill, marked "statement for services rendered." Scribbled on it were references to two sedative drugs: "hydroxyzine 50 milligrams and chloral hydrate 1,700 milligrams."
The statement did not mention that Ashton also received laughing gas, or nitrous oxide, the Adlers say.
Dr. Norbert Kaminski, a Roseville dental anesthesiologist and president of the Michigan Dental Society of Anesthesiology, said the dosages exceed guidelines from the federal Food and Drug Administration and standard reference manuals for dentists, such as the "Drug Information Handbook for Dentistry" from Delta Dental and LexiComp's Dental Reference Library.
Kaminski computed dosages for the boy and said Ashton was given five times the dose of hydroxyzine and two to three times the dose of chloral hydrate, and that even lower doses are recommended when the drugs are used together. Combined with the laughing gas, Ashton was pushed into a level of sedation that Zhu, as a pediatric dentist, was not licensed to perform, Kaminski said.
Kaminski has campaigned statewide to toughen Michigan's sedation regulations.
Michigan is one of only two states that do not require permits for dental professionals performing sedation, Kaminski said. Permits help consumers readily identify what level of sedation a dental practitioner can offer, Kaminski said.
The state Board of Dentistry is reviewing whether to toughen standards in the field. So far it has balked at requiring permits, which would tell consumers whether a dentist has the right training to do either awake sedation or deeper sedation. The board had planned to take up the changes at its April meeting but postponed the discussion, possibly until its next meeting June 14.
'I just want justice'
The Adlers say more parents, even people like them who are familiar with sedation, need to ask more questions before and during a visit. The couple has watched a younger child with a brain injury undergo sedation for brain tests. But now they have to relive their fears -- something will go wrong every time he has another sedation procedure, Rebekah Adler said.
"I just want justice," she said. "I want the people of Michigan to know this can happen to them."
Contact Patricia Anstett: 313-222-5021 or panstett@freepress.com
More Details: Questions parents should ask before pediatric dental sedation
• How much training have you had?
• How do you monitor children to see whether they stay properly sedated?
• Does the office have rescue equipment in the room where the procedure is done, and how often does the staff practice using it?
• How long do you monitor a child before discharge?
• Will I receive a pretreatment report describing what is being done and what drugs will be used in the procedure?
By Patricia Anstett
Detroit Free Press Medical Writer
Western Dental for Sale?
Federal Trade Commission implies Private Equity Executives deciding dental treatment will give North Carolina citizens lower costs.
North Carolina Representative Stephen LaRoque called in the FTC when it looked like SB655/HB698 might pass. Is Representative Stephen LaRoque bought and paid for by Corporate CEO’s? Appears so.
Where has the Federal Trade Commission been all these years if this is such a huge issue? Nowhere to be seen, not until brought in by Private Equity and Representative LaRouque.
FTC Staff: Proposed North Carolina Dental Services Law Would Likely Reduce the Benefits of Competition for Consumers
Federal Trade Commission Documents and Publications
May 29, 2012FTC Staff: Proposed North Carolina Dental Services Law Would Likely Reduce the Benefits of Competition for Consumers
Federal Trade Commission staff, in response to a request from North Carolina Representative Stephen LaRoque, stated that a bill proposed in the North Carolina legislature (http://www.ftc.gov/os/2012/05/1205ncdental.pdf) would likely deny consumers seeking dental services in North Carolina the benefits of competition, including the potential for lower prices, expanded access to dental services, and greater choice.
North Carolina House Bill 698 would give the North Carolina Board of Dental Examiners significant new regulatory and oversight authority over Dental Service Organizations (DSOs), which contract with dentists to perform non-clinical, business management functions, allowing dentists to focus more on patient care and less on administrative tasks. According to the FTC staff letter, the Bill would prohibit currently-used DSO management agreement provisions and give the Board exclusive authority to review and approve all DSO management agreements in North Carolina. The Board could apply these new restrictions and oversight powers to prevent DSOs from entering the state, and to dismantle DSOs now operating in the state by refusing to approve management agreements when they come up for renewal.
"Given that the Board already oversees health and safety issues as part of the licensure regime that governs all dentists in the state, and given that DSOs focus solely on non-clinical aspects of dental practice, it does not appear that the Bill would enhance the Board's ability to ensure patient safety," the FTC staff comment stated, noting that underserved communities, including 78 of the state's 100 counties, may be particularly affected if DSO efficiencies cannot be realized. "Therefore, we urge you to consider whether the Bill's restrictions and grants of regulatory power to the North Carolina Board of Dental Examiners are necessary to protect consumers" or whether they risk "merely protecting those dentists who do not choose to use DSOs against competition from those who do."
"In the absence of DSO-specific safety concerns," FTC staff urged the North Carolina legislature to consider the potential anticompetitive effects of H.B. 698 and reject the Bill.
The comment is part of the FTC's ongoing efforts to promote competition in the health care sector, which benefits consumers through lower costs, better care, and more innovation.
The Commission vote approving the staff comment was 5-0. It was sent to North Carolina Representative Stephen LaRoque on May 28, 2012. A copy of the letter can be found on the FTC's website and as a link to this press release. (FTC File No. V120007; the staff contact is Patricia Schultheiss, Office of Policy Planning, 202-326-2877.)
The FTC's Bureau of Competition works with the Bureau of Economics to investigate alleged anticompetitive business practices and, when appropriate, recommends that the Commission take law enforcement action. To inform the Bureau about particular business practices, call 202-326-3300, send an e-mail to antitrust@ftc.gov, or write to the Office of Policy and Coordination, Bureau of Competition, Federal Trade Commission, 601 New Jersey Ave., Room 7117, Washington, DC 20580. To learn more about the Bureau of Competition, read Competition Counts (http://www.ftc.gov/competitioncounts).
MEDIA CONTACT:
Office of Public Affairs
202-326-2180
Copyright 2012 Federal Information and News Dispatch, Inc.
Federal Trade Commission Documents and Publications
Private equity invests in dentists to pull poor kids' teeth for Medicaid dollars - North Carolina Battle Ground
Private equity firms have found a profit center in the teeth of poor children, which the firms are getting to by buying or backing dental management firms and getting their dentists aggressively into the business of over-treating kids on Medicaid.
Just as Mitt Romney's work at Bain Capital was about creating investor profit, not jobs (whatever he may claim now), this is about creating investor profit, not healthy teeth. For instance:
On May 2, All Smiles Dental Center Inc., a management company owned by Chicago-based Valor Equity Partners, filed for bankruptcy protection. Its hand was forced in part by a Texas Medicaid action cutting off payment to some of its clinics because of allegedly “excessive” and “inappropriate” orthodontic care, according to an All Smiles executive’s affidavit included in the filing. All Smiles was part of a state audit in which 90 percent of Medicaid claims for orthodontic braces were found to be invalid because they weren’t medically needed, according to Christine Ellis, one of the auditors.In some cases, the braces may have been put on children's baby teeth. Another dental management services company, ReachOut Healthcare America, which is owned by Morgan Stanley Private Equity, specializes in going into schools and treating kids in bulk. And when quantity is the priority, well, you make some mistakes. Like the case where six-year-old Sabrina Martinez's teeth were drilled "even after the student’s mother, Valerie Davila, told the company she was seeing a family dentist and didn’t need any work." But, see, there was another student named Sabrina Martinez, and if you're just trying to get through the most procedures you can on the most kids you can, you don't necessarily take time to tell one Sabrina Martinez from another. In another case:
When ReachOut called Stacey Gagnon to tell her the mobile dentist was coming to Isaac’s school, she said she explained that he had seizures and other serious medical conditions. ReachOut was told he could have a cleaning and oral hygiene education, nothing else, according to Gagnon.After that call, ReachOut dentists held Isaac Gagnon down and gave him two steel crowns, two pulpotomies and 10 X-rays.
Cases like this obviously require individual dentists to suck, both as dentists and as human beings. But if it's just about individuals, such stories don't happen to scale. That takes big money—things like private equity involvement pushing dental management services companies to expand the scope of what they do from providing services like billing and scheduling to coming closer to directing actual medical decisions, something that is potentially in violation of "State laws [that] broadly say only licensed dentists or firms they own can practice dentistry."
Some states are cracking down, and the U.S. Senate is investigating possible overbilling by several firms. But while regulating these abuses is an important first step, private equity firms will find the next under-regulated point of entry into profiting off of the massive inequality that leaves poor families vulnerable to such abuses and creates no meaningful disincentives to rich investors doing things like this again and again.
Ain't it the truth! Again and again and some more agains. North Carolina seems to be the battle ground, with Senate Bill 655/House Bill 698.
Private Equity firms are going all out to STOP North Carolina Dental board from enforcing the laws there. If you are a state lawmaker in North Carolina, I wouldn't be shocked if you got a call from beyond the grave from the likes of Leona Helmsley or Kenneth Lay.
The News Observer reports - Big buck in dentistry's ownership - "Who should make decisions about your dental care: you and your dentist – or a big, out-of-state corporation owned by Wall Street private equity funds? That’s the issue in the fight over Senate Bill 655 in the North Carolina legislature."
Orthodontics Offices Closing in Texas
Looks like the spin has started in Texas. I’m hearing many Orthodontic clinics will close up shop on July 1, 2012.
In the piece below, Dr. Michael Newman's says, "...about 5 percent of them would meet the requirements now."
Fact is, about 5% qualified EVER! Only thing that is changing is maybe, just maybe, stricter enforcement of standards already in place.
Surely Dr. Newman really meant to say, "about 5% is all we can bill for and not get nailed for Medicaid Fraud, now"
TIMES RECORD NEWS - Wichita Falls, Texas
Orthodontist office braces for closurePractice was only one in area taking Medicaid
Wichita Falls, TX May 26, 2012 -The only orthodontic office accepting Medicaid payments in Wichita Falls has stopped seeing patients and has locked its doors.
Red River Orthodontics set up shop on Euerka Circle in mid-2010. A sign in the door of the vacated Wichita Falls practice directs patients to an office in Fort Worth.
Representatives of Red River Orthodontics declined to comment, and referred questions to an attorney who could not be reached Friday.
The business was registered in the Wichita County Clerk's office under the title John Gremmels, Grill Repair, PA. The address given was in the 3300 block of Monterra Crest Drive in Fort Worth.
Last year Texas paid out $184 million in Medicare for orthodontics. That's more than every other state combined.
Dr. Bill Hendrickson, of Hendrickson Heetland Orthodontics, said he suspects Red River Orthodontics bolted for the door when they realized the Medicaid money was drying up.
"Their words were, 'It's a good investment,'" said Hendrickson, who visited the office personally. "They said, 'This is a very lucrative business.'"
Hendrickson now is in talks with state officials. He said he's trying to take on the patients who were displaced when Red River Orthodontics jumped ship.
Technically, at least one dental office that offers orthodontic services still accepts Medicaid, but is actually kept from doing so because of more stringent, state-mandated requirements.
In 2005 about 80 percent of dentist Dr. Michael Newman's patients were on Medicare. Newman, who operates Texas Orthodontics in Wichita Falls with his wife Denise, practices orthodontics as well as other dental procedures. Until October 2011 he was able to treat most of the patients who needed Medicaid to pay for his services.
But stricter enforcement of Medicaid standards mean that most of them, even patients who have already been fitted with braces, won't receive his care.
"I would say about 5 percent of them would meet the requirements now," Newman said.
In fact, only one of his potential patients received the go-ahead from the state for treatment. Newman wasn't allowed to treat that patient because he isn't a specialist.
A few factors have contributed to this, he said.
One is that some orthodontists have been accused of taking advantage of Medicaid funds. One case, detailing taxpayer money given to All Smiles Dental Centers in Dallas, has drawn significant media attention.
Another factor is the splitting of the third-party entity that paid Medicaid funds to orthodontists, the Texas Medical and Healthcare Partnership. About a year ago, he said, the company was divided into three new agencies, DentaQuest, Delta Dental, and Managed Care of North America. Newman said it hasn't been the same since.
He said the companies have drawn up constricting new rules that makes it virtually impossible to get a patient approved for payment.
"They started cutting back so that we couldn't get the cases approved," he said.
One rule that's being more strictly enforced is that an orthodontist must prove that a procedure is "medically necessarily" to maintain a patient's health. Newman said this is laughable.
"There is no patient I have ever seen who is going to die because of their teeth," said Newman, an officer of the American Orthodontic Society.
Friday, May 25, 2012
America's ToothFairy forms partnership to help at-risk children
America's ToothFairy forms partnership to help at-risk children
May 25, 2012
In an effort to expand oral health services for children, My Kid’s Dentist/Every Kid’s Dentist (MKD/EKD) announced a partnership with National Children’s Oral Health Foundation: America’s ToothFairy (NCOHF) through the Students United for America’s ToothFairy (SUAT) Pediatric Dental Residency Program. As a result of this alliance, NCOHF will become the primary charitable partner for the Pacific Dental Services-affiliated MKD/EKD offices.
Designed to provide critical oral health educational and preventive services for at-risk children, this new program also cultivates interest in the oral health field and unites future dental professionals in a concerted effort to break the cycle of pediatric dental disease in their communities. Guiding chapter activities, members of the SUAT Pediatric Dental Residency Program will serve as mentors for dental, pre-dental, dental hygiene, dental assisting and high school student volunteers.
“We are proud to partner with My Kid’s Dentist/Every Kid’s Dentist through this exciting program and applaud their commitment to children’s oral health,” said Fern Ingber, NCOHF President and CEO. “Their support will enable NCOHF to mobilize graduate, undergraduate and high school students throughout the country in an effort to reach thousands of underserved children with the resources, services and education necessary to prevent pediatric dental disease.”
Stephen Thorne, Founder, President and CEO of Pacific Dental Services, will also join the NCOHF Board of Directors. The NCOHF Board of Directors consists of highly respected and dedicated leaders of national and international organizations, universities and corporations concerned with children’s oral health and elimination of oral health disparities.
“I’m honored to be joining the NCOHF Board of Directors,” said Stephen Thorne, Founder, President and CEO of Pacific Dental Services. “NCOHF provides unparalleled oral health care education and support services for at-risk children and I’m looking forward to working with my fellow board members to shed light on pediatric dental disease and to help break its cycle.”
Dental Center Manager Gets Green Light For Sale To Lenders
Nothing really new here…
Law360, New York (May 25, 2012, 12:36 PM ET) -- A Tennessee bankruptcy judge on Thursday approved a credit bid to sell dental center manager Church Street Health Management LLC to a group of its lenders for $25 million plus their debt, just a few months after fallout from Medicaid fraud claims pushed the company into bankruptcy.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Keith M. Lundin agreed to the sale to CSHM LLC, an entity owned by some of Church Street's lenders including CIT Healthcare LLC, after no other bids were received at an auction.
Connecticut attorney general to seek restitution from Winsted dentist over billing practices
I’d say if your are a corrupt dentist in Connecticut and have your name on a PC or PLLC you might be a dumbass. Here is what happened to Dr. Doug Macko. So, if you are in a dental clinic there, and pacing the floor with worry, then you know you are doing criminal acts, right? Get your nitro pills ready. (You know who you are)
HARTFORD –Published: Thursday, May 24, 2012
Attorney General George Jepsen said in a statement that he is seeking restitution from a Winsted dentist and his practice for “allegedly violating the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act by illegally billing the Connecticut Medical Assistance Program from April 2002 through October 2009.”
“The state Department of Social Services administers the Connecticut Medical Assistance Program, which includes Medicaid and other programs that pay for medical benefits for certain low-income and disabled Connecticut residents. DSS terminated the provider agreement for (Dr.) Douglas J. Macko ... and on Oct. 26, 2010, suspended him from the program for 10 years,” the statement said.
Macko and his professional corporation, Douglas J. Macko, D.M.D, P.C., in Southington, “had unlicensed dental assistants perform cleanings and other dental services, which may only be performed by licensed dental professionals, and then billed the state as if Macko had performed the services,” the statement said. “Alleged illegal billings were also made for services that were never provided.”
The complaint also alleges that “the acts, practices and course of wrongful conduct by Macko violated public policies against larceny, vendor fraud, health insurance fraud and against a medical provider violating licensing requirements.”
“This action is being brought to seek restitution, civil penalties and other relief authorized by law,” Jepsen said, also in the statement. “It should also send a clear message to other providers that Connecticut will not ignore fraudulent billing and other illegal practices and will vigorously pursue restoration of taxpayer dollars lost as a result.”
Susan E. Kinsman, director of communications for Jepsen's office said Thursday that the action brought by the attorney general is a civil one and, "It is our understanding that criminal charges have not been brought at this time."
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Mom takes 6-year-old out of dental chair to protect him
These places are so corrupt they don’t even care to change their ways during the middle of massive lawsuits or Federal Investigations.
Mom takes 6-year-old out of dental chair to protect him
San Antonio Headlines Examiner
When Karla Cardenas took her 6-year-old son Steven to a San Antonio dentist office on Friday, May 18, 2012, little did she know that she would have to take her son off the dental chair and refuse the treatment to protect him.
“They wanted to put him in a straight jacket type papoose while he was still screaming in pain from the shots they were giving him in his gum,” Cardenas said. ”They were trying to rush it and they heavily sedated him.”
The single mother of four took her son to The Smile Center Family Dentistry on Blanco Road after getting the approval and direction from Medicaid.
“I had no choice but to take Steven to that center,” Cardenas said. “Medicaid required it.”
“I told them to stop, you are not going to do this while he is in this much pain,” Cardenas said as she grabbed her son out of the chair.
Cardenas now said she is glad she followed her instinct because she has since learned that this dental care chain has been under scrutiny by the news media.
Chantel Brewer said “they did the same thing to my daughter “but “she kept getting out of the papoose so they wanted to send us home with her teeth all shaved down without the caps on.”
It was so bad that “even the assistant had scratches all over her face from my daughter kicking her in the face, neck, arms and even kicked her in the eye because she was in that much pain.”
“How can the Medicaid office send us to that office when there is this much bad news about them,” Cardenas asks. “It looks like they are herding children in and out as fast as they can with little concern about the pain.”
Earlier this year, Brian Collister of WOAI news issued several reports regarding similar concerns from other parents. According to WOAI, the dental chain has earned $23 million from Medicaid since 2007.
One San Antonio law firm, The Crosley Law Firm, P.C. is representing patients against this chain of dental centers who believe their children “have been victims of substandard dental care leading to injuries and requiring additional treatment.”
According to the Crosley Law Firm website, “many of these parents were approached in parking lots and lured into Smile Center with the promise of dental exams for their children at no out-of-pocket cost to them.”
“In most cases we have seen, the children were covered by Medicaid, and Smile Center would bill Medicaid directly,” the website stated. “ Often the dental care consisted of pulpotomies and the placement of stainless steel crowns.”
Crosley says that for some of their clients “the dental work may have been unnecessary, and resulted in a large bill to Medicaid” and in some cases “the injuries caused from the dental care necessitated visits to the emergency room and/or hospitalization.”
Cardenas, who has been a nursing student, indicated she “didn’t see any kind of resuscitation or life saving equipment or a ‘crash cart’ available” in the event of an emergency.
“This doesn’t mean they don’t have any (life saving equipment),” Cardenas explained. “I’m just saying I didn’t see any there.”
Hey, dental office managers, you too can be arrested, face felony charges, and jail time.
I have to ask is it worth it? Is playing along with the fraud worth giving up your life and family?
Office managers out there, know exactly what is happening with all the Medicaid fraud, children being abused and sit on their asses. Why?
Yeah, I’ve heard it, over and over and over again. “I need to feed my family”. Don’t mean to be so cold, but I’m so over hearing it.
OM’s at the dental mills are paid well, very well, too well in many cases. $50 to $60 thousand dollars a year is over the top to manage an office for a dental clinic. The paycheck is meant to hold them hostage as well keep them gagged and handcuffed.
Several times a week I find folks coming to this blog looking for the answer to their question on whether they- office managers, dental assistants, etc.-can be arrested or held liable in criminal fraud or malpractice behavior they see in their offices. They answer is a big fat YES. Ask Claudia Ventura.
CA Dentist Arrested for Insurance Fraud
Insurance Fraud — By Trace America on May 14, 2012 at 4:48 PMBeverly Hills often brings up images of huge mansions with beautiful sparkling swimming pools, gorgeously landscaped lawns, and several fancy cars in a large driveway. It often does not bring up images of insurance fraud; but one Beverly Hills dentist to the stars may be changing that.
According to the Beverly Hills Patch and the District Attorney’s Office, Tom K. Kalili, 57, was arrested on May 4th and accused of insurance fraud, grand theft of personal property and filing a false tax return. He was charged in a criminal complaint with 101 felony counts.
Kalili is the owner and operator of Beverly Hills Medical Suites.
It is reported that Kalili and his partners have several celebrity clients, including Jim Carrey, Kathy Ireland, Adam Sandler, Keanu Reeves and Vin Diesel.
Kalili’s office manager and biller, Claudia Ventura, 38, is also being charged, if only with 10 felony counts, including insurance fraud and accessory after the fact.
These charges all come out of a multi-year investigation by the California Department of Insurance, the California Dental Board and the California Franchise Board.
According to DrBicuspid, Kalili directed Ventura to submit fraudulent billing statements to four different insurers for a total of $339,799.99.
Prosecutors are asking for Kalili’s bail to be set at $500,000 and Ventura’s at $25,000.
If Kalili is convicted, he could face over 50 years in state prison, while Ventura could only receive up to seven.
Errol Gillis, DDS v California Board of Dentistry–Appeals Court Decision–Gillis lost on many levels.
Dr. Gillis worked at Sears Dental and things did not go well for him. He fought the law, and the law won. He lost his licenses for "gross negligent and incompetent" professional treatment. He appealed that decision to an Administrative Law Judge. The Dental Board took it to the First Appellate District Division One in California. The Dental Board won. Errol M. Gillis, DDS v California Board of Dentistry - Appeals Court Decision and Order Case CPF-10-510174 Jot this down: After a five-day hearing spanning days in June, July, and September 2009, an ALJ issued a proposed decision on December 3, 2009. The decision found the facts as set forth above and concluded Gillis was both grossly negligent and incompetent under Business and Professions Code section 16702 for overfilling James J.‟s tooth (paragraph 5E), both grossly negligent and engaging in unprofessional conduct under section 1670 for failing to respond to the wife‟s calls (paragraph 5G), and repeatedly negligent under section 1670 for failing to maintain complete patient records and failing to note the overfill or advise James J. about it (paragraphs 5A and 5F). The ALJ found the Board had not proved the other allegations of the accusation.
The Dental Nightmare of Private Equity
The Dental Nightmare of Private Equity
After years of getting quarterly dental cleanings, my periodontist said he wanted to pull several teeth and do three or four periodontal procedures. My pockets were too deep, I was told. And don't worry, the receptionist said in a cheerful voice, I didn't have to pay all at once. I was given about nine or ten months to get the $8000 together.
I declined the offer. He is now my ex-periodontist.
Several years later, I was on the verge of losing tooth #16, the left upper quadrant wisdom tooth. And tooth #15, the second molar, was not in good shape either. I was willing to sacrifice my wisdom tooth if it meant saving the tooth next to it, but then my dentist wanted to pull that one too! So I set up appointments with dentist after dentist after oral surgeon after endodontist until I found a dentist I could trust. My new dentist filled the tooth with no guarantees--this was about five years ago--and I've been fine ever since. No root canal. No tooth extraction.
So you can imagine my horror when I read the following (from May 17 on the Bloomberg website, an article by Sydney Freedberg: Dental Abuse Seen Driven By Private Equity Investments):
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Small Smiles can’t pay their creditors but can offer $5000 sign up bonuses to prospective employees? Just saying…
I guess they have cut back, it used to be $10k. lol
Speaking of bonuses, maybe the $10K “loans” mentioned in the March 2012 below expense report were “signing loans” not “signing bonuses”.
Anyone closing these illegal operations down yet? Anyone interested?
Wouldn’t dental insurance companies be held liable for recommending their beneficiaries go to these illegal operations? What about CSM, for recommending them? What about Tristar and Dentaquest for recommending these illegal dental clinics? Just asking…
Doc 272-March-Monthly Operating Report - Church Street Health Management
May 2012 and still disgusting reports about Small Smiles. Can someone just tell me, why that is exactly?
Ever heard of Small Smiles Dentistry?
May 23, 2012
Firstly I want to say that I am speaking from personal experience with a Small Smiles Dental Office. I have had some what irritating and bad experiences with them. My son first went to them when he was three and well I thought nothing of it. We knew he needed his front teeth pulled on top. He had acid reflux as a baby till about two years old and does have a pretty bad gag reflex.
So with that being said puking was his middle name if I brushed his little gums with that blue finger thing, he would puke projectile! He still has some issues with his gagging, he also has a bit of anxiety as well, I wont deny that. However we needed to go in for cleanings that was fine. They told me he needed to come in 1 time a year or less that he should be okay. I asked about the cleanings they said just make sure he brushes. So I did what they said and we went back again later for another issue he was having a tooth that was bothering him.
They said it was two teeth and capped them both with silver, he did gag and puke while there. Then after they said he didn't need to come back at all for cleanings, to just keep him brushing. I called another dentist who pushed us away, saying sedate him, he needs to be put under. I really didn’t think that was the smart thing to do. He has respiratory problems already with asthma. I was referred by this new dentist to another dentist and they said put him under, he needs to be put to sleep. I’m sorry if they can work on other peoples kids to fill a tooth, why on earth was it that horrible for mine. So I called small smiles again because I felt defeated that NO ONE would see him unless sedated or the others I called weren’t accepting new patients.
So after calling Small Smiles again I just didn’t know where else to go, we honestly cannot afford to pay for him being put under, and I’m afraid to! By this time the dentist said it would be easier to just pull it, and when he came out, he looked horrible my poor baby. His face was so red and I said next time my husband or I will be going back there. We attempted to schedule a cleaning and they didn’t seem to have any openings.
I called them again recently because my son is having issues. We take him in and they sit there and put there fingers in his mouth and pull them out fast like they are scared of him, cause he may puke because last time he was there for the same tooth he puked on the woman, she was upset and started complaining my hair, my hair. I told them its been hard just even trying to get him to properly brush. The puke filled with stomach acid isn’t for the teeth at all and will rot them! So she was very childish this time, there is no soothing or trying to make him feel comfortable. So after poking their fingers in and out of his mouth like scaredy cats, they sent in two other women and left.
Then told my husband his tooth needed extracted. It had a abscess on it so we got antibiotics thankfully. The dentist they referred us to was AWESOME!!! Dr Craig Schmidtke, of Metro Oral – Maxillofacial & Facial Cosmetic Surgery. He looked at his mouth and said I can send you next door to Dr. so and so to save the tooth and explained he don’t want to put him under because of his asthma, that he could get his tooth out with no problem if there isn’t any saving it. We called the other doctors next door and another one they referred to but neither were taking new patients.
So I just said its a baby tooth, it will grow in later just take care of it now. So they took him back and boom it didn’t take long at all a little topical numbing and gas they didn’t even give him a shot of numbing, at least he said they didn’t! He said that the guy was really nice and made him feel like he really wouldn’t hurt him. I was so glad and felt so relieved, happy and so grateful he was good to my boy.
What he did explain to me about Small Smiles is that they have no special training to call themselves Pediatric. He said he took special courses to be an Oral Maxillofacial etc to be the specialist he is. He took Psychology classes and everything, that he could do it and boom it would be done, no sedation. I was shocked to hear there is no special training or nothing, they are basic dentists who take a crash course basically in dental. Kinda scary to think they are only taking care of kids, then to think they tell parents no when they ask to go back with their children.
When I was there a 12-14 year old girl asked if her Mother could go back there with her, not thinking they would say no her mom was right behind her, they said NO you don’t need your mom. Told the mother to wait out there and she would be out soon.
HELL NO is what I say! No one tells me that I cannot go back with my child to have a procedure of any kind done!
I don’t recommend this dental company as a good dentist for kids!
They use very tight restraints that strap there arms to their sides, they are being sued for their behavior now by 10 family’s!
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
American for Tax Reform promoting Private Equity’s take over of your dental health.
As Bloomberg report in “Dental Abuse Seen Driven by Private Equity” as has pointed out, this is NOT a good idea. All American’s should be fighting this issue and support North Carolina’s Senate Bill 655.
ATR is demonstrating the lengths the Private Equity firms will go to in order to line their pockets with your health and health care dollars. These dental management companies could care less about your dental health. But they certainly care about the creative dental care they can deliver to you, your children, your family, and your elderly.
Here ya go:
ATR Urges North Carolina Legislators to Reject Anti-Free Enterprise Protectionism
North Carolina is one of the top battleground states for the 2012 election. Ads are already flooding the airwaves from Cape Hatteras to Cashiers and, with the DNC being held in Charlotte, the state is expected to become a political fever pitch over the next few months.
A major topic during the campaign season will be the policies that President Obama has signed into law, such as the 20 tax increases in ObamaCare alone, that will drive up the cost of health care. Indeed, Republicans who hope to pick up three congressional seats in the Tar Heel State will make this a major theme of their campaigns. Yet, in order for North Carolina Republicans to avoid muddling their message and contradicting themselves, Republican state legislators would do well to reject Senate Bill 655, legislation currently pending in the General Assembly that would drive up the cost of dental care for North Carolinians.
Yesterday, Americans for Tax Reform sent the following letter to all members of the North Carolina House, urging them to reject SB 655, legislation that uses the power of government to stifle competition and drive up consumer costs:
21 May 2012
Dear legislators,
On behalf of Americans for Tax Reform (ATR), I write today urging you to reject Senate Bill 655. If passed, this bill would add onerous new regulations restricting the ability of dentists in North Carolina to engage in free enterprise and administer their practices more efficiently. Simply put, this bill is an attempt to use the power of the government to eliminate competition. The effects of SB 655 will harm consumers and taxpayers in the state by limiting access to care, restricting competition, increasing costs, destroying jobs and discouraging investment.
It does NOT add “new” regulations. It further defines regulations already in place, because the Private Equity firms have found, and sometimes created loop holes with direct access to your dental health.
As it stands, North Carolina faces a shortage of dentists, ranking just 46th nationally in dentists per capita, based on data from the American Dental Association (ADA) and US Census Bureau. The result is less access to needed care and higher costs. Dentists in North Carolina earn 25 percent more than the national average according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Who said there is a shortage of dentist? ADA? Seriously! WTF! The ADA is in bed with the Private Equity firms! Google Dental Group Practice Association and the ADA. The ADA is allowing the president of the DGAP to host and sponsor simanrs to “sell their snake oil.” Various heads of the ADA are owners or partner in the Private Equity owned changes of dental clinics! What does preventing Private Equity and Hedge funds from deciding the treatment your dentist delivers have to do with the above? Nothing!
This costs North Carolina consumers over $250 million more in additional costs every year, with the effects being the same as that of a hidden tax: increased costs and less disposable income for the citizens of North Carolina. SB 655 would exacerbate these current problems.
Tell us exactly how the above is true? Because the ATR says it is? I say it’s BS. ATR is making this a political issue as if your dental care depends on whether you are a Democrat, Republican or Independent. This is ridiculous.
Given the rising costs of health care across the United States and the resulting burden on employers and taxpayers, states should look to promote more efficient models of delivering healthcare. SB 655 would prohibit dental practices from contracting with Dental Service Organizations (DSOs), which allow dentists to focus exclusively on providing care, resulting in both high quality care and lower costs for patients.
More outright bullshit! DSO’s are owned and operated by Private Equity firms and they could care less about your dental health! These rules were put in place to protect the public and NC is trying to continue to protect the public.
DSOs do not own dental practices,[choking and gagging on this one, pure lies, let’s put a couple of these fake owners in front of a grand jury and see if the DSO’s own the clinics or not, I dare someone to do this one.] and the Dental Board already has the regulatory authority required to ensure that all dentists deliver high quality care to their patients, irrespective of how they choose to contract for administrative services. This is a broadly accepted model utilized by many other medical professions, including emergency room physicians, oncologists, anesthesiologists and hospitalists. In a recent statement, the ADA wrote: “States should implement administrative reforms to cut red tape that impedes dentists from delivering care and patients from receiving it.” SB 655 flies in the face of this advice.
What red tape? Go to school? Pass a test? DEA paperwork? Hell, why require any of this, since it appears this is too much red tape.
As the John Locke Foundation noted in its analysis of SB 655, North Carolina lawmakers “should be looking at ways to expand dental care in North Carolina, not restrict it. If a management company is interested in assuming purchasing, billing and administrative duties and a dentist wants to spend more time on patient care, they ought to be allowed to work out whatever arrangement works best for them.” ATR agrees whole-heartedly with this astute assessment.
While many in the dental industry support SB 655, many other dentists, consumers, taxpayers, employers, and investors in North Carolina would be harmed by this legislation. Rather than consider legislation that stifles competition and drives up consumer costs, North Carolina lawmakers should instead be looking for ways to make the state more economically competitive. As such, I urge you to oppose SB 655. If you have any questions, please contact ATR’s Patrick Gleason at (202) 785-0266 or pgleason@atr.org.
Onward,
Grover G. Norquist [head idiot in charge]
Read more: http://atr.org/atr-urges-north-carolina-legislators-reject-a6899#ixzz1vcX74nVb
Monday, May 21, 2012
David Bates, DDS, president of Allcare Dental Management and Allcare Dental and Dentures of New Hampshire, surrendered his license to the state Board of Dental Examiners
NASHUA – The president of a defunct dental chain gave up his New Hampshire dentistry license to resolve professional misconduct charges.
David Bates, DDS, president of Allcare Dental Management and Allcare Dental and Dentures of New Hampshire, surrendered his license to the state Board of Dental Examiners. The board approved the agreement on May 9, according to state Attorney General Michael Delaney.
Bates had been scheduled to appear before the board for disciplinary hearings later this month. Bates has also been the focus of licensing boards in Massachusetts, West Virginia and North Dakota, Delaney said.
Most of the company’s offices closed abruptly in December 2010. In Nashua, that meant hundreds of former patients, some of whom said they prepaid for dental work, descended on the Nashua office shortly after New Year’s Day trying to track down their dental records, X-rays and dentures.
Sunday, May 20, 2012
Bloomberg article on private equity firms abusing children with unnecessary and intrusive dental treatment has spurred several articles on the web
Here are some highlights:
Bloomberg – Business Week
-
Dental Abuse Seen Driven by Private Equity Investments
- http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-05-17/dental-abuse-seen-driven-by-private-equity-investments.html#disqus_thread
Deal Book – New York Times:
- Is Private Equity Contributing to Dental Abuse? Federal and state
regulators are looking into whether dentistry companies backed by
private equity are being encouraged to perform unnecessary procedures,
Bloomberg News reports
- http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2012/05/17/morning-take-out-486
San Fransisco Chronicle
-
Dental Abuse Seen Driven by Private Equity Exploiting Care Firms
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2012/05/17/bloomberg_articlesM42NGH1A74E901-M4596.DTL
BoingBoing 40 comments or more:
Compliance Search
- Private Equity Responsible For Massive Dental Medicare Fraud, According to New Report
by Beth Connolly on May 17, 2012
- http://compliancesearch.com/compliancex/private-equity-responsible-for-massive-dental-medicare-fraud-according-to-new-report/
Physicians for National Health Program
-
Private equity investors moving into dentistry
- http://pnhp.org/blog/2012/05/17/private-equity-investors-moving-into-dentistry/
Global Post
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Private equity, profits and aggressive dentistry
- http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/macro/private-equity-profits-and-aggressive-dentistry
Watchdog Bytes
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Texas taxpayers soaked for unneeded dental work
-
http://blogs.star-telegram.com/investigations/2012/05/speaking-of-texas-teeth-combine-devious-dentists-with-dubious-private-equity-firms-and-what-do-you-get-soaked-taxpayers-ac.html
Huffington Post
-
Private Equity Firms Push Dentists To Detrimentally Overtreat Patients:
-
Meta Filter
-
"The dentist man got me" (lot of comments)
- http://www.metafilter.com/116030/The-dentist-man-got-me
Weblog
- Dental Abuse Seen Driven by Private Equity Investments
Munchausen by profit.
- http://weblog.sinteur.com/index.php/2012/05/17/dental-abuse-seen-driven-by-private-equity-investments/
Protect Quality Dental Care
- Bloomberg News on Dental Management Corporations: Patient Abuse,
Private-Equity Funds & Medicaid Fraud - Wall Street Money Fuels Coalition Against SB655 in North Carolina
- http://www.protectqualitydentalcare.org/bloomberg-patient-abuse-private-equity-funds-and-medicaid-fraud-mark-dental-management-corporations/
Bangor Maine Daily News:
-
Dental abuse seen driven by private equity exploiting care firms
- http://bangordailynews.com/2012/05/20/health/dental-abuse-seen-driven-by-private-equity-exploiting-care-firms/?ref=latest
Charleston Daily Mail
- Dental service accused of abuse
- http://www.dailymail.com/Business/201205200102
Democratic Underground
-
Now Wall Street is f**king with our teeth.......
- http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002707485
Summary of Twitter links:
Happy Birthday to me… Happy Birthday to me….
Dental boards: their mission is clear, but the execution—not so much title
One of my least favorite organizations, but still good points made.
Protect the public. That’s the deceptively simple mission of any American dental board. But while the mandate may be uncomplicated, its execution is anything but. Critics of board actions say they range from misguided and contradictory to baldly self-interested. Controversial decisions are increasingly putting boards under fire. Among the more common sources of complaint are
unfair and unequal treatment of dentists; failure to quickly address malpractice and the unlawful restraint of competition.Perhaps nowhere is the board under greater fire than in Texas, where the executive director recently resigned. Sherri Meek’s abrupt exit followed a rocky stint punctuated by frequent dispute. In particular Meek was assailed for allowing board members to act as paid expert witnesses in lawsuits against Texas dentists; the practice posed a clear conflict of interest. Long-time opponent Dr. Mark
Stankewitz, a prosthodonist, used YouTube to decry the Texas board as “a good- ole-boys’ network…some dentists receive slaps on the wrists for serious matters and others serious consequences for much less significant offenses.”Dentist-turned-attorney Frank Recker used the same language—a good-ole-boy’s network—to describe his own experience on the Ohio State Dental Board in the early 1980s.
Parents: Dental Board investigators headed to Bakersfield
Saturday, May 19 2012 10:00 PM
The Bakersfield Californian
Parents: Dental Board investigators headed to Bakersfield
BY KELLIE SCHMITT Californian staff writer kschmitt@bakersfield.com
State dental board officials will come to town in early June to investigate long-simmering allegations that a Bakersfield dentist mistreated children while they were strapped to a papoose, or stabilizing board, several local parents say.
Many of the parents involved also allege excessive, unnecessary or flawed dental treatments from Dr. Edward Dove.
"I struggle with the fact that it's taken a long time, but at least movement is coming quickly now," said parent Chris Cook, who has led a grassroots mobilization effort. "I'm exhausted but that doesn't mean I stop -- he ain't getting away from me."
Dove did not respond to an interview request, though he said last year that he gives excellent care, has never hurt a patient and the parents are "making it up." Dove, who has a clean disciplinary record, also said last year that the papoose board was necessary to keep some of his young patients immobile during treatment.
Since the parents banded together with a Facebook page last summer, the Bakersfield Police Department has conducted "a couple of investigations" into Dove's care, said Sgt. Joe Grubbs. He said police have been unable to substantiate any criminal wrongdoing, and are not actively investigating Dove now.
News of the Dental Board of California visit follows the decision by a high-profile Colorado attorney not to take the local parents' case.
Jim Moriarty, who is currently representing a young patient in a case of alleged pediatric dental abuse that's received national lawmaker attention, said the Bakersfield case involved too few local parents, a weak expert on his side, and too much "he said/she said." He also said being an out-of-state attorney was challenging.
Despite that setback, which parent Cook called "extremely shocking," the parents' case is still building momentum. Along with the coming dental board visit, they've collected about 1,000 signatures for an online petition to revoke Dove's license. Several weeks ago, Cook's son was featured with other Bakersfield children in an Inside Edition television segment, which investigated dental papoose boards.
To papoose or not?
Papoose boards, many of which have Velcro straps, are used to hold young patients in a stable position while procedures can be safely done.
Many of the parents' complaints against Dove stem from the slaps and scratches that reportedly happened while their children were restrained on the board, under partial sedation. Parents weren't allowed in the room during the process, something Dove has said is important since they can interrupt and distract from care.
The American Dental Association responded to that Inside Edition show with a press release detailing guidelines on when such stabilization should be used.
The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry says papoose boards might be used when young patients require immediate diagnosis but can't cooperate due to "a lack of maturity or mental or physical disability;" when the safety of the patient, dental staff or parents would be at risk; or when movement of sedated patients needs to be reduced.
In general, papoose boards aren't considered part of routine dental care, said Dr. Paul Casamassimo, a pediatric expert at the Nationwide Children's Hospital in Ohio and a past president of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. For a typical, healthy child, it would not be the first course of action.
[Dr. Casamassimo has failed to mention since 2008 he has been on the the board of advisors to one of those Private Equity dental chains-Small Smiles. I would like to ask Dr. Paul Casamassimo why he’s done nothing to stop the use of the papooose board, mainly used to expedite treatment, in the Small Smiles Dental Centers. In fact Dr. Casamassimo and Dr. Steven Adair, Small Smiles new Director of Clinical Quality Initiatives and Education and asshole buddies as they say, putting on a CE course together in Adair’s home town of Hilton Head, North Carolina.]
"Most people undergoing procedures in a dental office can stand still," he said. "It would be a hysterical child, or one who is too young to understand what is going on who would need the papoose."
At Ohio State University, a resident in one of Casamassimo's programs is working on a thesis project looking at parental attitudes toward papoose boards as well as other techniques like oral sedation, anesthesia and distraction/positive reinforcement.
Thirty years ago, parents would have said they'd rather have their children held down and the job done, Casamassimo said. Now, though, he has seen a 180-degree shift, as parents prefer putting children to sleep for extensive care.
[Is it the parents, Dr. Casamassimo or is it your pocketbook that prefers sedation. I call BS on that 30 years ago crap, 30 years ago no one had ever heard of such a thing. Were you papoosed Dr. C?]
In a previous interview, Dove pointed out that using general anesthesia is much costlier than using the papoose board, which can be a factor for parents struggling financially.
Another shift in dental practices is the increasing movement toward having parents present during care, Casamassimo said. He said the group of dentists who preferred that parents stay out of the room is largely retiring and a new generation wants the family more involved.
[Increased shift toward parents being present?? Would that be because of this blog and the lashing you’ve taken for the past four years. If not for the force of the Federal Government, Small Smiles would still be keeping parents in the waiting rooms.
[I want to know when the shirt was away from having parents present? Actually, that was something Dr. Casamassimo and some of his colleagues hatched to not let parents know what they were doing to the children back in those rooms. Dr. C is as much a part of this problem as anyone. He’s held various offices at the AAPD for decades!]
Regardless of whether parents are in a room, they should actively understand the extent of the procedures, the pros and cons, and be comfortable with it, he said.
That's not what Bakersfield parent Kristy Andreas says she experienced when she took her then-3-year-old son, Evan, to see Dove. If she had understood Evan would be papoosed, she would have insisted on staying with him, or at least behind the door, she said.
Evan says he was scolded and hit during his dental procedures, Andreas said. In addition, Andreas found Dove's care faulty. She ended up getting not just a second but a third opinion to prove it, all of which she said she has documented in her dental board complaint.
Attorney setback
Late last year, Colorado attorney Moriarty told The Californian he was poised to represent Bakersfield parents and was planning a visit here to ink the deal. Earlier this year, he said he was having an expert review some of the children's dental records. But last week, he said he had decided not to take the case.
Moriarty's other dental clients have been in the headlines recently for a case against a dental management company. Such management companies, which are often backed by private-equity money, are the subject of a U.S. Senate inquiry.
Moriarty said some private-equity backed dental businesses routinely bilk Medicaid patients, mistreating them in the process. Even though Medicaid reimbursements tend to be very low, the idea is that the businesses can make money if they practice "assembly line medicine."
"They routinely papoose and grossly sedate children, routinely refusing to allow parents to be present," he said. "They do that to keep parents from knowing what they're doing."
Moriarty said he was drawn to the Bakersfield case because of the parents' mobilization efforts. Ultimately, though, there was too much "he said/she said" and it would have required working with another California-licensed attorney since he was out of state, he said. Besides, he specializes in going up against private equity-funded dental businesses. Dove owns his own business.
Moriarty was clear that he still supports the California parents' mission.
"What Chris Cook and the other families did -- banding together, raising hell and bringing attention to the authorities --brings to light" conduct which otherwise would not be brought to life, he said.
That's exactly what local parents hope to accomplish June 9, when they say dental board investigators will interview their children at the Bakersfield Police Department.
If a dental board investigation finds a preponderance of evidence some violation has occurred, the next step is for the case to go before an administrative law judge, said Russ Heimerich, a spokesman for the dental board. He would not comment on any specific details of the Dove case.
But that could take some time. From January to March of this year alone, the dental board received 969 complaints. From the intake of a complaint to disciplinary action -- if it is deemed necessary -- takes about 1,100 days on average.
"I know some people want it wrapped up in an hour, like CSI," Heimerich said. "But these aren't investigations that happen overnight."
Staff writer Jason Kotowski contributed to this report.
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Private equity, profits and aggressive dentistry
Bloomberg has published an article today that you just have to read.
It starts with a mom in Arizona picking up her (sobbing) 4 year old after school, only to learn that a dentist had installed steel crowns on two of his back teeth — "pulpotomies" according to a note in his backpack. Baby root canals.
The mother hadn't even been consulted. "I was absolutely horrified," she said.
No, this wasn't Marathon Man for toddlers. So why this aggressive act of dentistry?
It was about money. Profits. Private equity. And a new plague known as "dental abuse."
Bloomberg explains:
Isaac’s dentist was dispatched to his school by ReachOut Healthcare America, a dental management services company that’s in the portfolio of Morgan Stanley Private Equity, operates in 22 states and has dealt with 1.5 million patients. Management companies are at the center of a US Senate inquiry, and audits, investigations and civil actions in six states over allegations of unnecessary procedures, low-quality treatment and the unlicensed practice of dentistry.
ReachOut, Bloomberg reports, is one of just 25 dental management services "bought or backed by private-equity firms in the last decade." The management services take care of the business side, leaving the dentists to focus on teeth. The trouble started when the profit-driven businesses began seeing opportunity in your tax dollars: Medicaid.
Maybe that's why there's a big cavity in the US government's budget?
A former physician once counseled me that dentists were "a bunch of crooks, out to get rich." At the time, I took that with a grain of salt. Thanks to Bloomberg, I won't even floss without exercising caution.
Click here, and read on.
And if there's a dentist nearby, keep your mouth closed.