Attorney General Curtis Hill announced yesterday that his office, working in conjunction with the office of United States Attorney Russell M. Coleman of the Western District of Kentucky, has obtained a $5.1 million settlement with two dental firms. The settlement resolves claims that ImmediaDent of Indiana LLC improperly billed Indiana Medicaid for dental services in its nine dental practices in Indiana. The other firm involved in the settlement, Samson Dental Partners LLC, provides administrative and other support services to ImmediaDent. The companies are accused of submitting false claims for payment to Indiana’s Medicaid program between Jan. 1, 2009, and Sept. 30, 2013. Samson Dental is accused of violating Indiana’s law prohibiting the corporate practice of dentistry by exerting obtrusive influences over ImmediaDent’s medical professionals and staff in a manner that compromised their clinical judgment. Both companies are alleged to have claimed in billing documentation that simple tooth extractions were surgical extractions, and they allegedly billed for deep cleaning that was either not performed or not medically necessary. This matter arose as a complaint for monetary damages under the qui tam provisions of the federal False Claims Act and the Indiana False Claims and Whistleblower Protection Act. A dentist aware of the improper activities, Jihaad Abdul-Majid, brought the matter to authorities’ attention. The information he provided led to an investigation by the Office of the Indiana Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky. This matter was handled by Indiana Deputy Attorney General Lawrence J. Carcare II and Assistant U.S. Attorney Benjamin S. Schecter of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky. Under the settlement, the companies agreed to pay the United States $3,400,271 and the State of Indiana $1,782,729.