I'm glad you were smart enough to get a 2nd opinion.

It makes me sad to think of how many people aren't used to advocating for themselves and got scammed out of thousands of dollars.

I mentioned this on your other thread, but I had a new dentist tell me I needed several crowns and a whole bunch of work - which a subsequent dentist told me was all completely unnecessary. That was about 15 years ago and all of those teeth are still doing fine.

So many people self-pay for dental care, or may have dental insurance but are still used to making sizeable out of pocket payments. Dentists have a pretty easy time making a lot of money off those types of people and so the less than scrupulous ones do.

It's too bad that unscrupulous practitioners are allowed to keep their license.

I'm glad to hear you followed through and got a 2nd opinion. Honestly....I had a dental assisting certificate, years ago and saw THIS sort of thing going on when I was interning. I didn't want any part of it.

Just got off the phone with my insurance company and there is nothing they can do. I guess this is why our premiums keep going up and these evil people keep taking advantage of their patients.

Yeah....it's NOT just happening in the dental industry.

Ya know. Try finding a "good" car mechanic is impossible too! lol

Let your state's attorney general know the story.

Kath, I just found your post here after checking your original one. Just unreal so many people are being scammed! I found the link I pulled up the other day from the ADA. There's also one from the Dept. of Consumer Affairs. Most people likely don't file complaints, but I'd at least want to try. If nothing else, it might make you feel like you did something.

https://www.mouthhealthy.org/en/dental-care-concerns/problems-with-your-dentist

https://www.dca.ca.gov/consumers/complaints/dbc.shtml

Congrats on no cavities!!! :-)

I did a Facebook and Yelp review, posted on Facebook hoping my fellow town friends will see it and at least be aware. I also took your advice Sephia and filed a complaint on-line with the attorney general's office.

Chloebud, we posted at the same time...will check out the links. Thanks.

Good idea with Facebook and Yelp! It makes me crazy thinking this dentist can just go on with no consequences!

I see the second link I posted is for California. Probably easy to find any other state.

Surprise, surprise. I am so glad you got a second opinion. Hopefully some potential patients will see your posts and find another dentist. The fact that the office didn't give you the complete set of x-rays (which you paid for) is reprehensible. They belong to you!

Just sent the Ky board of dentistry an e-mail. We'll see what happens, if anything.

Great...so glad you sent the email. You did your part, even if nothing happens. Unfortunately, it often takes complaints from several people to get their attention. As I mentioned, most people just don't do it.

Wouldn't it be nice if the KY Dental Board did contact the dentist with some questions?

I'm so glad you are reporting this incident. Sad to think how many people were scammed by this dentist. As I had said in your other thread I had a similar situation several years ago with a new dentist and if I had listened to her, I would have been out several thousand dollars and probably causing future issues with my teeth. Still makes me mad when I think about it.

I think none of us are surprised with your outcome.

This dentist could have gotten away with her scam if she just sited two cavities for arguments sake.

It is sad to think people actually will believe such an over abundance of cavities unless this is the norm for them.

I am so glad you went for that important second opinion!

Eld, yep, probably would have went along with it if it were just 1 or 2. Which makes me angry just thinking about it. The only teeth I have problems with in the last 10 years are ones that were filled when I was a kid. Drilling into teeth obviously weakens them and this evil B---- was willing to do that to at least 7 of my teeth!

Good outcome, you did the right thing.

I'm sorry to say but many of the better dentists don't accept insurance. Or don't accept all insurance. Dentists with the best reputations have full schedules (and sometimes long waits for appointments) and are unwilling to accept the fee discounts that insurance reimbursements require. It's not true for all but it's the dentists who aren't completely busy who are among those who take insurance. Unless a dentist has a new practice, having an unbusy schedule is usually for a good and obvious reason. And those are the ones who need to try to do the most with the patients who DO come in. It's a downward spiral.

As mentioned before, I'd be surprised if your experience will interest the dental board. No work was done so the only criticism might be a mis-diagnosis or aggressive treatment plan. Matters of judgement but not malpractice.

"I did a Facebook and Yelp review, posted on Facebook hoping my fellow town friends will see it and at least be aware."

You should also check Twitter and Instagram to see if the new dentist posts on those platforms. Check for her as an individual as well as for her as a dentist. If she does have accounts there, post something (using her @ name).

Lindsey, I don't use either of those but I did just post on Nextdoor after another Kter mentioned it on my Facebook post.

Since posting on Nextdoor I have gotten about 10 replies, most saying they were told the same thing!

"No work was done so the only criticism might be a mis-diagnosis or aggressive treatment plan."

Being told you have 7-10 cavities that don't exist is a pretty big deal IMO. How many other patients have allowed this dentist to proceed with unnecessary work? Treatment or not, there's no harm in contacting the state dental board. Enough complaints like Kath's might spark some interest. She may or may not get a response, but she did the right thing in trying.

Chloebud, a lot, according to the messages I'm getting on Nextdoor. I did some research and am going to contact a couple more places tomorrow. They have to do with insurance fraud, one a state agency and one a hotline for fraud with my insurance company. If I give them the paperwork showing intent to defraud then they might do something or at least investigate her? Not sure but am going to try.

Let's hope they do something with your paperwork. You deserve major kudos for trying! Most people would get upset but let it slide. In the meantime, more patients are walking into that dentist's office.

Maybe encourage the others with similar experieces who contacted you to write to the agencies that you did.

A half dozen complaints will attact more attention than one lonely one.

Half a dozen heads are better than one ... if you wanna make kraut.

ole joyful

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My dentist, when talking to me about work that needs to be done, displays the xrays on a screen in front of me and his assistant AND the hygenist as he points out any problems. He is a new dentist who took over the practice of one I'd had for 25 years when she finally retired. The hygenist has been there since I started and I know she'd not be a part of a practice that cheated. I trust her totally and am learning that I can also trust this new dentist.I know that my insurance requires the xrays be sent to them for review before they will approve any work to proceed (that they would pay for), so I'm not sure how she would get around that requirement - if there is one? Does she send fake xrays?

I think pursuing the consumer and medical fraud track is the right thing for you to do and am glad that you might save some other people from being scammed.

Olychick, I have no idea if she has to send the x-rays or not. The ones she provided my old dentist show no decay. Even I can see there is no decay! My old dentist's office provided me with a paper copy of them so they are going with the other paperwork to the Ky Board of Dentistry. Getting ready to go mail the whole packet now.

Just went on Facebook and the dentist posted on my review with this:

Thank you for taking the time
to share your experience and I'm sorry it wasn't up to our normal high
standard. We strive to offer the best treatment plan for each
individual situation, rather than a one-size-fits all solutions. We
would love the opportunity to work this out and provide care that is not
only up to our standards, but up to yours as well. Please give us a
call when you can.

I want to reply but am not going to. Will let the board of dentistry handle it. I hope they do anyway.

"...and I'm sorry it wasn't up to our normal high standard."

Their normal high standard??? What exactly is that??? Let's see...all those cavities that didn't exist??? They're attempting a CYA tap dance. I'm so glad you did this, Kath. Now they know you're not one to just let this go. "Please give us a call..." Yeah, right.

Haha, take a look at a Yelp page for any kind of business. It's a very typical response to a negative comment - "Please contact us so we can explore this with you in greater detail", or "so that we can discuss this with you".

If anything, what's surprising to me is that a comment, any comment, would have attracted a response so quickly.

Well, their normal standard is bilking their patients and insurance companies for cavities they don't have, going by most of the comments I received on Nextdoor.

I also think their quick response to your review is telling.

What about replying to your dentist's post with "No thank you, I will let the board of dentistry handle it." Would that be going too far?

Nickel, would love to do that but I'm not going to.

Alerting them to what you are doing might give them time to try covering their tracks or making up some kind of plausible reason (not that I could think of one).

I did think of the same thing nickel suggested since it's so tempting. However, sometimes silence really can be golden.