Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney’s Office

Northern District of Ohio

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Monday, April 25, 2016

Cleveland dentist charged for billing $407,000 for work never done, such as fillings on patients with dentures

A Cleveland dentist was charged with one count of health care fraud after billing Medicaid for more than $407,000 in work that not authorized or never done, said Carole S. Rendon, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland Office.

Robert Rouzaud, 59, operated Five Points Dental Centre on East 152nd Street. Rouzaud submitted claims on behalf of Medicaid recipients for services that were not pre-authorized, as required, and/or not provided. This took place between 2009 and 2015, according to the criminal information.

For example, Rouzaud billed for an excessive number of fillings on the same teeth, when he had not done fillings, filed claims for fillings on teeth that had been previously extracted, and submitted claims for fillings on patients who had dentures, according to the information.

Rouzaud submitted false claims totaling $407,982 for services he did not provide between 2009 and 2015. He was paid more than $343,000 for these services, according to the information.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the Court after review of the factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, his role in the offense and the characteristics of the criminal conduct.  In all cases, the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum. 

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Collyer following an investigation by the FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services -- Office of Inspector General and the Ohio Attorney General's Office.

An information is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove the defendant guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.