Needless Root Canals Performed On Children, NJ Dentist Practices Admit

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — A former employee of a pediatric dental practice filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the administrative service provider for 13 affiliated practices, two of which are in Bergen County, for allegedly performing needless pediatric root canals.

HQRC Management Services and owner Dr. Barry Jacobson allegedly performed unnecessary and invasive dental procedures on children to "line their own pockets," New York Attorney General Letitia James said.

A $753,000 settlement was reached in the lawsuit over allegations that some HQRC dentists performed medically unnecessary pulpotomies, often referred to as "baby root canals," on pediatric patients at 13 affiliated practices, one of which is in Teaneck and another in Wyckoff.

Jacobson and HQRC admit investigative findings that, in some instances between 2011 and 2018, affiliated dentists performed and billed Medicaid for therapeutic pulpotomies not supported by medical records maintained at respective dental practices.

“My office will not tolerate any instance of medically unnecessary procedures performed on vulnerable Medicaid beneficiaries,” said Attorney General James.

The whistleblower will receive a portion of the settlement, which was the result of a joint investigation between the Attorney General's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Jersey. The district office is collecting $313,783 for federal shares of New York and New Jersey Medicaid damages as part of the agreement.

“That affiliated dentists were willing to go along with this plan to make money is especially egregious. Recovering their ill-gotten gains only begins to undo this damage," U.S. Attorney for the District of New Jersey Philip Sellinger said.

The defendants also admitted that, in some instances between 2011 and 2014, HQRC made billing errors on claims submitted to New York and New Jersey Medicaid contractors that resulted in inaccurate servicing provider information on claims for services performed at three of its locations.

Dr. Jacobson and HQRC, now doing business as PDS Management Solutions, operate pediatric dental practices in New York, New Jersey, and Vermont.