Wicked schemes in the dental chair: A Chelmsford dentist has pleaded guilty to engaging in a Medicaid Fraud Scheme.
Scott Cale, 68, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit health care fraud and one count of health care fraud before U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman. Cale is scheduled to be sentenced on July 20, 2023.
Cale was indicted by a grand jury in January 2020, along with co-conspirator Anthony DiStefano. However, charges against DiStefano were dismissed.
The scheme involved DiStefano, who was barred from participating in the MassHealth insurance program due to significant concerns over his dental care. To circumvent this exclusion, DiStefano recruited Cale to join his practice.
From 2014 to 2018, dental services that DiStefano personally delivered were billed to MassHealth using Cale’s provider identification credentials. Cale then paid DiStefano a share of the money that MassHealth had paid Cale.
The purpose of this arrangement was to deceive MassHealth into paying for dental services that were not reimbursable. As a result, multiple MassHealth patients received dangerously poor care from DiStefano.
The charges of health care fraud and conspiracy to commit health care fraud each carry a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, one year of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes.
U.S. Attorney Rachael S. Rollins, Andrea Joy Campbell, Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and Phillip Coyne, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General, Office of Investigations, made the announcement. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Evan Panich and Chris Looney, along with Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Lownds, are prosecuting the case.
Related Federal Cases
- Viviane Cazeau, Bank Fraud Scheme, Massachusetts, 2023 · Florida
- Gerardo Heriberto Nuñez Nuñez, Elder Fraud Scheme, Boston MA, 2026 · Pennsylvania
- Armand J. Croteau, $1.9M IRS Fraud Scheme, FL, 2023 · Utah
- Mark O. Wittenmyer, $500,000 Wire Fraud Scheme, Holland OH, 2023 · Ohio
- Kenneth A. Grant, Investment Fraud Scheme, Copley OH, 2023 · Ohio
Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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