Pediatric dentist Jesus Villegas, DDS, and his two dental clinics in Connecticut have agreed to pay nearly $1.4 million to settle false Medicaid claims, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut.
The settlement resolves allegations that Dr. Villegas submitted false federal and state claims when taking pediatric x-rays in his two dental offices: Fairfield Pediatric Dentistry in Milford and Haven Pediatric Dentistry in West Haven.
State and federal government agencies, including the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), maintain that dental assistants who were not certified by the Dental Assisting National Board (DANB) took the majority of x-rays at Dr. Villegas' clinics. Under Connecticut law, dental assistants may only take x-rays if they have completed the dental radiography portion of the DANB exam. X-rays taken by an uncertified dental assistant are not payable by Medicaid.
The $1.4 million settlement covers Dr. Villegas' activities from June 1, 2010, to March 17, 2014. In addition, the dentist and his two clinics have entered into a three-year billing integrity agreement with HHS to ensure compliance.
