The DMD Check-Up: Dentist Scams Teamsters for $1 Million

A dentist in California has pleaded guilty to stealing around $1 million from a Teamster-sponsored healthcare plan. That story tops this week’s DMD Check-Up. Also making the list: scrutiny of dental clinics in Texas and a new report on the business climate for dentists.

• California Dentist Scams Teamsters for $1 Million (National Legal and Policy Center)

Dr. David Lewis “for a while seemed as resourceful in his billing as he was in his drilling. But in the end, the Sacramento dentist was too clever by a half.” He recently pleaded guilty in federal court “for defrauding a Teamster-sponsored healthcare plan for UPS employees out of at least $1 million in unnecessary or nonexistent work.”

• Most Americans Don’t Floss Their Teeth (US News & World Report)

A troubling new CDC study shows that most people ignore dentists' advice on flossing. “The first nationally representative analysis found that those who floss daily amount to just 30% of the population.” Lead study author Duong Nguyen says: “We need to increase education.”

• Medicaid Dental Clinics Accused of Overtreatment (Houston Chronicle)

A very troubling report from Texas: “lawyers, dentists, and pediatric patients' parents have alleged the clinics, often propped up by corporate entities, overbill Medicaid and put at great risk the most vulnerable patients—children.” This dental malpractice, “principally at corporate 'Medicaid clinics' seeking to maximize profits, is a disaster."

• Relocating? Consider Setting Up Shop in Port St. Lucie, FL (Dr. Bicuspid.com)

Here’s a quality summary of the 2016 Best Cities for Dentists list recently compiled by ValuePenguin. Florida Focus: “The city boasts an average annual salary of more than $225,000 for dentists, yet its cost of living is less expensive than average.”

• Dentists Running for US Congress (ADA.org)

With the top of the ticket mostly settled for 2016 (Trump vs. Clinton), down ballet candidates are now coming into the picture. Two Republican dentists—Dr. Drew Ferguson of Georgia and Dr. Fred Costello of Florida—are seeking seats in the US House of Representatives this November. They men hope to join the three other dentists already in Congress.

• 2016 American Dental Hygienists’ Association Annual Meeting (Newswire)

If a member of your dental staff needs more or new training (plenty of CE) or just deserves some work-outside-the-office time, then it might be worth looking into attendance at the nation’s largest gathering of dental hygiene professionals set for June 8-14 in Pittsburgh Here’s a report on the event.

• Dr. Robert Randolph, Dentist and Investor, RIP (Chicago Sun-Times)

Nice obit. A professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry by day. At night, “in his basement workshop, he crafted garden sculptures out of recycled materials. He patented other creations. He produced a portable “Trailside Dentistry” kit designed to help people in developing countries and the dentists who treated them.”

• The Bad Breath Bible (Daily Mail)

Several myths about bad breath (which affects up to 87% of us at some point) have been debunked, according to a new published in the journal Oral Health. The study identifies gum disease as the most common cause of halitosis and a person’s mood can also make a difference.