Parents Are Furious Over What Happened At Small Smiles
Parents became furious upon being informed of the wrongful actions of the dentists at Small Smiles. When confronted by upset parents the dentists would say things such as:
“These treatments needed to be done.”
“This wouldn’t happen if you brushed your child’s teeth.”
“If you don’t agree or if you don’t bring your child back, we will be forced to call Child Services.”
“Your son’s teeth are bad because you feed him too much candy and soda.”
“It’s normal for kids to be scared of going to the dentist.”
“Using a papoose is a common practice and totally acceptable.”
Eventually, many of the dental hygienists and other assistants at Small Smiles began to realize their guilt and feel the pain of these angered parents. Some of the assistants began to speak out on what was happening behind closed doors, in return, they were terminated from their jobs.
Many of the terminated assistants went to local authorities and media to tell what was actually going on in the back rooms of the dental clinics.
The FBI becomes aware of the reports and decided to start their own investigation. After three years of investigation, the FBI concluded that Small Smiles was guilty of performing unnecessary treatment on thousands of children to defraud the government by billing Medicaid. January 2010, it was ordered by the United States Department of Justice that Small Smiles’ parent company, FORBA Holdings LLC, pay back $24 million they took from Medicaid. The employees that spoke out on Small Smiles took home million each as a reward.
Upon reading this post, maybe you are a parent that has just been made aware of what was happening at Small Smiles dental clinics.
If you, your child, or someone you know has been a patient at Small Smiles, it is of great importance that you contact us for a free consultation.