US Dental Technology Company Calls For Investigation To Stop Fraudulent Paediatric Dentistry
Following USA federal probes into private dental providers performing unnecessary treatments on children, the CEO of Wonderbox Technologies, Craig Kasten, told the Las Vegas conference of the National Association of Dental Plans that the dental industry needs to take measures to reduce such behaviour.
The Affordable Care Act means that Medicaid dentistry for children in America is likely to rise over the next few years and so extra information is needed to ensure everything runs smoothly.
Kasten’s comments come after a two year investigation by the US Senate into dental practices controlled by corporate investors rather than by dentists. The results found that the Nashville based Small Smiles dental chain made production goals and gave dentists bonuses for the quantity of work they performed rather than the quality produced. The results made grim reading, with over-billing and low quality care found by The Center for Public Integrity.
Chains offering paediatric dentistry have also been under a number of journalist investigations, which started in 2008 after a video was found of a 4-year old boy screaming and kicking while strapped to a ‘papoose board’ in order to receive dental treatment. Kasten informed the National Association of Dental Plans that fraud and abuse in the paediatric dentistry sector often affects children from low income background, causing distress to children aged 5 years and below.
Kasten called for the profiling of dentists in order to root out potential abusers, who perform painful procedures on children when they aren’t required. He calls for technological involvement, with programmes to streamline the administration process and enable the quick identification of dental profiles and the procedures that are most age appropriate for young patients.
Kasten believes using new technology can help decrease the number of children affected by fraudulent and unnecessary dentistry.
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