Dentistry

Aspen Dental, one of the nation’s largest dental service organizations (DSOs), recently settled charges alleging violations of California’s corporate practice of medicine (CPOM) and unfair competition laws. This was not the first time similar charges had been lodged against Aspen Dental; in 2015, it entered into a settlement with the New York Attorney General after…

Health care providers may want to offer free or discounted services to help patients, and that instinct may be good. Most providers, however, don’t think of “free care” as a kickback issue in the same way they might think about gifts or rewards as a kickback issue. They should, because the Office of Inspector General…

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently issued a favorable Advisory Opinion (No. 26-09) regarding certain free treatment that would be offered to patients of a pediatric dental clinic. Specifically, the clinic planned to offer free comprehensive orthodontic treatment to one select patient per year.

As a general…

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul recently signed a new law that will allow registered dental hygienists in the state to practice without the direct supervision of a dentist by mid-2027, pursuant to collaborative agreements with dentists. The legislation broadens permissible practice settings to include foster care agencies, signaling a path toward a semi-independent business model…

Ransomware cyber attacks have been a prominent threat to the healthcare industry. In this case, First Choice Dental, a large dental practice with multiple locations across Wisconsin, was targeted by hackers in October 2023. The hackers gained access to sensitive information including patient names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, passport numbers, driver’s license numbers…

On Thursday, May 29 at 12:00 PM, Rivkin Radler Partners Benjamin Malerba and Sean Simensky will present the webinar “Practice Transitions for the Practicing Dentist.”

This lecture is designed to inform dentists of some of the legal and practical issues surrounding practice transitions. Ben and Sean will explore the differing perspectives of the buyer and…

The American Dental Association (ADA) has joined a coalition of other healthcare organizations in writing a letter to U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer urging the Trump administration to exempt medical and dental supplies, equipment and devices from the President’s newly announced widespread tariffs.

The coalition’s letter explained, “Given the important role of our work in…