Michael Clair, Former Dentist, Accused Of Paper Clip Use In Root Canals

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. — A former dentist has pleaded guilty to Medicaid fraud for using sections of paper clips instead of stainless steel posts in root canals in an effort to save money.

Michael Clair, who had a practice in Fall River, is scheduled to be sentenced next week. He pleaded guilty Friday to defrauding Medicaid of $130,000, assault and battery, illegally prescribing prescription drugs and witness intimidation charges.

Some of Clair's patients reported infections after he performed root canals on them, said Grant Woodman, a spokesman for state Attorney General Martha Coakley, whose office prosecuted Clair.

Prosecutors say Clair was suspended by Medicaid in 2002 but continued filing by using the names of other dentists in his practice.

Clair's license to practice dentistry was suspended in Massachusetts in July 2006. Woodman said Clair is no longer licensed to practice dentistry in any state.

Clair's lawyer, John Dingee, didn't immediately return a call seeking comment Tuesday. The 53-year-old Clair now lives in Crofton, Md.

James Kulild, a professor of endodontics at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Dentistry, said there are very limited circumstances under which a paper clip could be used during dental procedures. He said a paper clip should never be left in permanently.

"Paper clips do not satisfy the requirements for posts, not only because they aren't made of stainless steel but because their shape and consistency will not allow them to be functionally acceptable to use," Kulild said.

Comments

[latino1631]

08:08 PM on 03/08/2012

I just read this artical about the dentist using paper clips and Im mad because my old dentist did the same to me a few yrs back. I don't know if I can do anything now?

[thomasandy]

03:57 AM on 02/04/2012

this article is on the dentist who was doing a root canal treatment. A former dentist has pleaded guilty to Medicaid fraud for using sections of paper clips instead of stainless steel posts in root canals in an effort to save money.so all the dentist must learn something from this incident. nice post.

[thomasandy]

03:32 AM on 02/04/2012

The hottest news of today - A former dentist has pleaded guilty to Medicaid fraud for using sections of paper clips instead of stainless steel posts in root canals in an effort to save money. now the law has also been awakened. all the dentist must learn something from this article. good post.

[Sherylynne Klein]

06:02 AM on 01/25/2012

"...Medicaid fraud for using sections of paper clips instead of stainless steel posts in root canals in an effort to save money." I think whoever wrote this needs a lesson in reporting. The "dentist" STOLE OUR MONEY in an effort to enrich himself while demonstrating a totally inhumane disregard for the health of his patients.

[NJBill]

05:58 AM on 01/25/2012

Well now, I just had a root canal YESTERDAY and now I read this... hmmmm, I may have a $1,300 paper clip in my mouth.

[wakohnen]

05:10 AM on 01/25/2012

It's a good thing I am not a licensed AC and Heat repairman. I used a paper clip to fix my furnace this winter.

[northcntrlcoast]

03:05 AM on 01/25/2012

I use to go to the dentist every 6 months for a exam and to get my teeth cleaned and polished. I stopped going to the dentist for one main reason. That is because i noticed that less and less time was being spent on the cleaning of my teeth on each visit. The time spent during scraping and polishing of my teeth was decreasing and i noticed the dentist assistant was always busy with other patients and the dental office staff was decreasing except for the billing staff. I noticed the billing staff were always patient and looked happier than the dental assistants.

[GoOceansideCalifornia]

02:27 AM on 01/25/2012

gives reason to one to pause when asked to open wide!

[arc23con]

01:05 AM on 01/25/2012

What ever happened to bobby pins?

[fhmjam]

11:40 PM on 01/24/2012

Hate to hear what would have happened if he'd been a proctologist doing a colooscopy..........

[mscellanus]

01:09 AM on 01/25/2012

fhmjam your winnie would have been permanently stiffed! LOL

[KadyFox]

11:11 PM on 01/24/2012

Next thing you know, his patients are going to complain about the aluminum foil fillings...

[gobibabi]

10:01 PM on 01/24/2012

I don't see the problem--this was part of the health reform bill: paperclips for root canals, rubberbands for tubal ligation, and slapchops for plastic surgery

[lita m]

12:51 AM on 01/25/2012

Of course, it might appear that way to an idiot. (And dentistry was not a part of the health care plan.)

[NJBill]

06:00 AM on 01/25/2012

It's a-comin' lita m.... when it does you'll slap yourself in the head and say, "By George gobibabi was right!"

[lghiata]

09:45 PM on 01/24/2012

Now that is a cheapskate.

[lotus88]

09:33 PM on 01/24/2012

Clip joints!

[oceanview136]

09:32 PM on 01/24/2012

I look forward every day to the wierd things that I read about in the Huffington Post !!