Exploited Homeless To Gain Claims Illegally
A dentist who maintained practices in Bushwick and Canarsie has been ordered to serve one to three years in prison for defrauding the Medicaid program by paying recruiters to solicit homeless patients with cash and bill taxpayers under his son’s name for services which the son never provided, it was announced.
Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman and State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli identified him as Lawrence J. Bruckner, 63, of Plainview, L.I., who formerly had dental offices at 155 Broadway in Bushwick and 1218 Remsen Ave. in Canarsie.
Bruckner was sentenced in Kings County Supreme Court before Judge Alexander Jeong. He previously pleaded guilty to two counts of health care fraud in the second degree, a felony violation of the social services law, and one count of criminal tax fraud in the third degree.
His company, Premier Dental, P.C., also previously pleaded guilty to one count of grand larceny in the third degree and a felony violation of the social services law.
He has paid nearly $700,000 in restitution and received last Thursday, Apr. 4, a state prison term of one to three years as a result of this joint investigation by the offices of the state Attorney General and Comptroller.
As a result of these convictions, Bruckner and his business are now excluded from the New York State Medicaid program and also face suspension from the federal Medicare program.
“Medical professionals like Dr. Bruckner are not above the law. In addition to paying back what he stole from the Medicaid system, a term in state prison is an appropriate punishment for this defendant,” Schneiderman said. “Medicaid provides critically needed health care to millions of New Yorkers. These fraudulent practices deprive the program of much needed resources and hurt lawabiding doctors. I would like to thank the comptroller for his cooperation in this joint effort on behalf of the taxpayers of New York State.”
“This dentist’s sole purpose was to cheat the Medicaid system,” Di- Napoli added. “He took blatant advantage of vulnerable people and kept expanding his scam to steal more. For the past six years, my office has seen repeated examples of how providers defraud the Medicaid system. We will continue to partner with Attorney General Schneiderman to make sure these Medicaid scammers are brought to justice.”
The dentist paid restitution of $559,424 to the Medicaid Program and $121,912 to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance prior to sentencing.
According to the charges, Bruckner- who ran a dental office in Bushwick since 2003 and another in Canarsie since 1988-submitted hundreds of false claims to the Medicaid program. Bruckner and his company paid recruiters kickbacks to supply him and at least three other dentists with Medicaid patients at his offices.
In a raid last year, investigators seized thousands of patient files and other documents from Bruckner’s offices. At one of the offices, investigators found dirty and unsanitary conditions. Shortly thereafter, the Medicaid program stopped all payments to Bruckner and the other dentists who worked at his offices.
The scheme occurred between 2007 and 2011 at the Broadway and Remsen Avenue offices. During that time, the majority of patients at those offices were brought in by recruiters. Bruckner and his business regularly paid the recruiters $25 to $30 kickbacks for each Medicaid recipient they brought in. They were often recruited from homeless shelters and soup kitchens and transported by van to his offices.
Bruckner gave the recruiters $15 to $20 to pay the recipients at the conclusion of their visit.
In addition, the recruiters solicited Medicaid recipients on the sidewalk outside the 1155 Broadway practice and in a shared waiting room at the office used by other health care providers. Bruckner’s clinics maintained log books to track which recruiter brought in each patient.
Bruckner also submitted fraudulent Medicaid claims for dental services allegedly performed at his offices by his son, Joseph Bruckner, D.D.S., when in fact his son never practiced at either of his father’s offices. Bruckner had his son sign blank Medicaid claim forms and forged others to avoid detection. Medicaid paid the son $471,703 based on those false claims.
The son transferred 90 percent of these payments to Bruckner and kept the remaining 10 percent.
Bruckner also arranged for at least three other dentists to work at one or both of his offices. Between 2007 and 2010, these other dentists paid Bruckner to generate Medicaid patients. Bruckner failed to report this income on his New York State income tax returns.
The prosecution was the result of a joint investigation by the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the New York State Comptroller. In May 2011, the Attorney General and Comptroller entered into an unprecedented agreement to combat corruption and protect public funds. Last year, its joint investigation led to four indictments in a state Senate member item theft scheme.
Schneiderman thanked the Office of the Medicaid Inspector General and the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance for also providing assistance with the investigation.
From 2007 to 2011, Bruckner, Premier Dental, and three other dentists were paid approximately $6.3 million by New York State’s Medicaid program for dental services allegedly performed at Bruckner’s offices.
