Jefferson County Dentist Guilty of Health Care Fraud and Illegal Distribution of Controlled Substances

Walter L. Dawkins, D.M.D., 60, of Mount Vernon, Illinois, pled guilty today in federal court in Benton, Illinois, to health care program fraud committed against Medicaid and to illegal distribution of the Schedule III controlled substance Hydrocodone, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced. The offenses involved prescriptions written outside the course of professional medical practice. The drug offense carries a maximum potential sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment, a $500,000 fine, and not less than three years’ supervised release following imprisonment. The health care fraud offense carries up to10 years’ imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years’ supervised release. Sentencing is scheduled for December 21, 2012 in Benton, Illinois.

This case was investigated by agents of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General; Drug Enforcement Administration; Federal Bureau of Investigation; and the Illinois State Police, Medicaid Fraud Control Bureau as part of the ongoing Project Dr. Feelgood investigations in the Southern District of Illinois. Assistant United States Attorneys Michael J. Quinley and Katherine L. Lewis handled the prosecution.