Dentist cops to raking in millions in kickback ploy

A dentist in Connecticut accused of collecting more than $2 million in a Medicaid kickback scheme pleaded guilty on September 4 to avoid being indicted in U.S. court, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Dr. Lakshmi Bethi, 48, of the now permanently closed Dr. Smile Family Dental in New Haven, CT, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to violate the U.S. anti-kickback statute. The dentist, who has agreed to forfeit $500,000, was released on a bond pending sentencing. She faces a maximum prison term of five years, according to a press release dated September 5 from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut.

Bethi, a South Windsor resident who had been practicing in the state since 2013, reportedly admitted to conspiring with individuals, including Jeffrey Malave, to recruit Medicaid patients to receive dental services from her in exchange for kickbacks, according to the release.

A portion of the kickbacks recruiters received were purportedly passed on to patients as incentives to attend dental appointments with Bethi. Once these patients went to their appointments with Bethi, the dentist billed Medicaid for the services.

Between 2016 and 2023, Bethi allegedly paid the recruiters more than $360,000 in kickbacks. Connecticut's Medicaid program reimbursed Bethi about $2.2 million for services rendered to the patients recruited via kickbacks, according to the release.

In February 2024, Malave, 48, of Shelton, pleaded guilty to related charges and is awaiting sentencing. Also, the investigation revealed that Malave recruited Medicaid patients for other dentists.

In March 2024, a U.S. grand jury indicted Dr. Hamed Ghorbani-Moghaddam, a dentist who practiced in Bridgeport, with conspiracy to violate the anti-kickback statute and five counts of offering and paying health care kickbacks. Currently, the 46-year-old dentist is being sought by authorities, according to the press release.