By Extra Extra | 11.16.2007
A five-month investigation by Roberta Baskin of WJLV in Washington, D.C.,"reveals that children on Medicaid who visit two Washington area clinics are suffering pain for profit." Former staffers and patients of the Small Smiles clinics, which are among the few dental practices serving children on Medicaid, allege that dentists routinely put children in restraints during exams, separated them from parents, and gave staff bonuses for upgrading procedures, such as crowns or baby root canals instead of fillings, to get more money from Medicaid. A Colorado-based company called FORBA manages 63 Small Smiles clinics nationwide.