Attorney General Lockyer Announces Sentencing of Los Angeles Dentist for Denti-Cal Fraud

(LOS ANGELES) – Los Angeles dentist Joseph N. Stan, 33, was sentenced today for defrauding California's Denti-Cal program by submitting numerous false claims over three years, Attorney General Bill Lockyer announced.

Stan was sentenced by Judge Michael Kellogg after pleading "no contest" in Los Angeles Superior Court to a charge of felony grand theft. Pursuant to a plea agreement, Stan paid $100,000 in restitution to Denti-Cal at the time of his sentencing and was placed on three years felony probation. As a result of the conviction, the dentist will be excluded from the Medi-Cal/Denti-Cal program for at least five years, the specific period to be determined by Medi-Cal administrators.

The state Medi-Cal program provides payments for dental services to eligible poor and disabled patients under Denti-Cal. Qualified dentists participate as providers and bill the Medi-Cal program for services rendered.

The criminal complaint against Stan alleged that the dentist submitted numerous false claims between June 1993 and October 1997 to Denti-Cal for services. State investigators found that the dentist billed for services not actually provided, and the dentist paid illegal kickbacks to have Denti-Cal patients brought to his clinic. State law prohibits health care providers from paying persons to find and bring patients to the provider.

The case was investigated and prosecuted by the Bureau of Medi-Cal Fraud and Elder Abuse in the California Department of Justice.