Dentist Charged In $1.7M Medicaid Scheme

A 51-year-old Chesterfield Township dentist has been charged with 27 felonies for allegedly defrauding Medicaid out of $1.7 million over a three-year period. U.S. Marshals arrested David Johnson last week in the Dominican Republic.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette announced the charges Tuesday, including:

• One count of Racketeering, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison;
• Twenty counts of Medicaid Fraud – False Claims (Fourth Offense), a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison; and
• Six counts of Health Care Fraud – False Claims, a felony punishable by up to four years in prison.

“Medical professionals are expected to conduct themselves with integrity and adherence to the law,” said Schuette. “A deliberate attempt to take advantage of the Medicaid system shows no regard for the law and violators will face the consequences of their actions.”

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Schuette’s Health Care Fraud Division began an investigation into Johnson after receiving an allegation that he was billing the Medicaid program using the identifying information of another dentist. Johnson was placed on the Medicaid exclusion list following earlier Medicaid fraud convictions in 2006, Schuette said in a statement.

The Medicaid exclusion list is a list of health care providers prohibited from billing the Medicaid program. Johnson allegedly used an eligible doctor’s information to improperly bill $1.7 million over the course of three years as owner of Livernois Dental in Detroit.

Johnson has been returned to the United States and is currently in custody in Miami, Florida. He has waived extradition and will be transported back to Michigan in the coming weeks to be arraigned in the 54B District Court in Ingham County.

Photo courtesy of the Michigan Attorney General office.