SOUTHINGTON – State officials have reached a settlement with a local dentist accused of defrauding Medicaid.
The Attorney General’s office announced Monday that Dr. Thomas DeRienzo, owner of Plantsville Family Dental, will pay $55,000 to resolve the False Claims Act allegations against him.
Between January 2010 and August 2014, DeRienzo allegedly upcoded procedures he performed, performed other procedures that were unnecessary and billed Medicaid for work he never did. Upcoding is when an incorrect billing code is assigned to a medical procedure to increase the reimbursement amount.