Texas dentist's wife, office manager added to indictment

The wife and office manager of an Amarillo, TX, orthodontist who has been indicted on federal charges of Medicaid fraud have also been indicted for their alleged participation in the scheme, according to an article in the Amarillo Globe-News.

Last month a federal grand jury indicted Michael David Goodwin, DDS, who practices in Amarillo and Crown Point, IN, on 11 counts of healthcare fraud for allegedly defrauding the Texas Medicaid program of approximately $1.5 million.

According to the federal indictment, 90% to 95% of Dr. Goodwin's orthodontic patients were Medicaid beneficiaries. The indictment alleges that from January 2008 through March 2011, Dr. Goodwin devised a scheme to defraud the Texas Medicaid program by billing the program more than $2 million for services he claimed he provided, when in fact some of the services were not medically necessary or dental assistants provided those services when no dentist or orthodontist was present to supervise.

A revised indictment released September 12 alleges that Dr. Goodwin's wife, Patricia Yolanda Goodwin, and office manager, Annette Hastings, took part in plans to commit healthcare fraud and defraud Medicaid. According to prosecutors, Patricia Goodwin made business decisions, supervised employees, handled payroll, and coordinated her husband's schedule, while Hastings managed patient scheduling and Medicaid billing claims, and made all business decisions when the couple was out of town.

If convicted, the three face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine on each felony count. Prosecutors also are seeking the forfeiture of $1.5 million in restitution and more than $244,000 in funds seized during the investigation.