NYC dentist from West Nyack charged with fraud

A New York City dentist from Rockland is facing felony counts of defrauding Medicaid by submitting phony bills for care he didn't provide, officials said Thursday.

Howard Rothenberg, 64, of West Nyack, was charged with billing the taxpayer-funded health insurance program for the poor and disabled for doing dental work on patients who told investigators they had never heard of him.

He is facing felony counts of third-degree grand larceny and first-degree offering a false instrument for filing, according to Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. He was arraigned Thursday.

"The charges are 100 percent false," said Rothenberg's attorney, David Fiveson of New York City. "He will be vindicated."

Rothenberg is charged with defrauding the program of more than $11,000, an amount that investigators said could increase as the investigation continues.

Medicaid investigators said that he billed Medicaid for at least 13 patients between 2010 and 2013 for services he said he performed. Investigators interviewed the patients, some of whom said they never heard of Rothenberg while others said they had visited him years ago but not during the time in which he said he provided care.

He has an office at 205 E. 111th St., in Manhattan.

Twitter: @JaneLernerNY