Dentist Sentenced to Prison for $783K Fraud Scheme

RICHMOND, Va. – A Mechanicsville dentist was sentenced today to 30 months in prison for defrauding Medicaid and four dental insurers of approximately $783,000.

According to court documents, Maryam E. Zarei, 47, of Glen Allen, was the owner and operator of Atlee Station Family Dentistry located in Mechanicsville. As such, Zarei controlled the submission of claims to insurance companies for reimbursement. From 2013 to 2016, Zarei admitted to defrauding Medicaid, Delta Dental, AETNA, Met Life, and U.S. Healthcare of $783,680.

Zarei’s fraud scheme involved three parts: 1) She fraudulently billed Medicaid and the insurers for services never rendered, such as for a variety of services when Zarei was out of the country; 2) She billed insurers for services rendered using inappropriate billing codes that resulted in higher bills than were justified by the actual service; 3) She billed insurers for services performed after the termination of the patients’ insurance coverage and then backdated the claims documents to make it appear that the services occurred when the insurance policies were in effect.

Tracy Doherty-McCormick, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Virginia Attorney General Mark R. Herring, and Adam S. Lee, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Richmond Field Office, made the announcement after sentencing by U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson. Assistant U.S. Attorney David T. Maguire and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney David W. Tooker prosecuted the case.

A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia.  Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia or on PACER by searching for Case No. 3:17-cr-157.