Judges: State botched fraud case, must pay $400K in fees
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A panel of judges has determined that Texas regulators so badly botched a Medicaid fraud investigation of a dentist that they're responsible for paying the nearly $400,000 in legal fees the dentist incurred.
The decision earlier this month by three administrative law judges was the first time the Health and Human Services Commission's Office of Inspector General was ordered to pay a defendant's legal fees.
The Austin American-Statesman reports (http://atxne.ws/1HoTNpg ) the judges found that none of the violations cited by the inspector general suggested fraud. Instead, errors by the Corpus Christi dentist appeared to have been oversights.
State regulators had confiscated more than $300,000 from the dentist.
The case is another setback for an office heavily criticized for actions that include a $20 million no-bid contract to an Austin company.
http://www.valleymorningstar.com/news/state/article_b63a90c8-d53d-5acd-a2ad-4003de236809.html
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