On Friday, after a five-week bench trial, Anchorage dentist Seth Lookhart, was found guilty of 46 counts that included Medicaid Assistance Fraud, felony Scheme to Defraud, and misdemeanor counts of Illegal Practice of Dentistry, and Reckless Endangerment by Superior Court Judge Michael Wolverton and his corporation, Lookhart Dental LLC was found guilty of 40 counts that were alleged against it.

Wolverton said when he handed down the verdict that the evidence presented against Lookhart in the case was “simply overwhelming.” In an accompanying order, Wolverton said, the evidence presented at trial established that Lookhart believed that he could get away with his fraud indefinitely and that he believed his scheme was foolproof, according to the Alaska Department of Law, Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. MFCU additionally stated that Judge Wolverton found that the State presented “a substantial amount of forensic evidence,” and that the “overwhelming amount of evidence was often supported, and often in excruciating detail, by Lookhart’s own texts, photos, and videos.”

In the case, it was revealed in court that one patient, only identified as the “hoverboard video” patient, had his teeth pulled without his consent and so was forced to repeatedly return to Lookhart for remedial care.

Dr. Lookhart began working for Alaska Dental Arts with an agreement to be paid $240,000 a year or 30% of the money he generated, whichever was greater. He was soon convinced by the office’s manager, Shauna Cranford, to begin offering IV  sedation, which is governed by specific regulations limiting its use to a few narrow circumstances which must be documented, and is generally not covered by Medicaid in non-emergency cases.

Lookhart received his IV sedation license in 2015. By 2016, Lookhart’s portion of the practice pulled in 31% of the total Medicaid payments for IV sedation.

Soon, even that was not enough and Lookhart came up with a scheme to cut his partners out of Medicaid monies and began bulling Medicaid under a different provider ID and had the payments sent directly to his home. He defrauded his partners out of $250,000 to $350,000 in this manner.He had been paid $1.9 million of the approximately $2.5 million he billed Medicaid.

Also in cases of private insurance, which does not provide coverage for IV sedation, Lookhart would offer those patients the option to pay a $450 flat-fee, which is well under the $2,490 Medicaid paid for the  same service, which is specifically prohibited by Medicaid.

Cranford, the office manager, in a plea agreement, “previously pled guilty to all of the conduct underlying the counts,” according to MFCU.

“The felony medical assistance fraud, theft in the first degree, and scheme to defraud charges carry a possible sentence of up to 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $100,000, and restitution to the State of Alaska Medicaid program and to his prior business partners. The top counts carry a potential fine of up to $2,500,000 for Lookhart Dental, LLC.  The misdemeanor medical assistance fraud offenses carry a possible sentence of up to a year in jail, a fine of up to $25,000, and restitution to the Alaska Medicaid program for the individuals and a possible fine of up to $500,000 for Lookhart Dental, LLC.  The misdemeanor unlawful dental acts offenses carry a possible sentence of up to 10 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000,” the Alaska Department of Law reports.

Lookhart’s sentencing is scheduled for April 30th, while Cranford’s sentencing is scheduled for February 3rd.

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