County Considers Targeting Licenses of Dentists Accused in Grant Scam

A McHenry County Board committee is looking into stripping the licenses of dentists accused of fiscally abusing a state grant program to give veterans dental care, according to a Northwest Herald report.

»Via the Northwest Herald

The board is exploring this option after the McHenry County State’s Attorney Office told the Finance and Audit Committee that charges wouldn’t be filed against the accused dentists, the report stated. The reason? The state’s attorney’s office thinks conflicting testimonies would make convictions difficult. And even if the chances of winning were better, the cost of pursuing prosecutions would cost the county more than the defunct grant program, the report added.

The misuse of the state grant that provided dental care to low-income county veterans came to the board’s attention after a 2014 audit, the report stated. The internal review of the five-year program showed double-billing, conflicts of interest and other abuses by dentists in the McHenry County Cooperative Dental Clinic, which ran the program from 2007 to 2012, the report added.