A group of dental businesses in the area will pay $1 million to settle a lawsuit accusing them of using predatory sales tactics and unauthorized loan applications to target elderly and low-income patients.
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The proposed settlement with Middletown Township-based Alpha Dental Excellence, Newtown Township-based Infinity Dental, and their founder and owner, Dr. Arpan Nalin Patel, was filed in the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas and is pending judicial approval, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office announced Thursday afternoon.
As part of the agreement, Alpha Dental will pay approximately $517,000 in restitution to impacted consumers.
The businesses must also pay $232,983 in civil penalties and $250,000 to cover investigation costs.
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The defendants will satisfy the $1 million total through monthly payments.
The agreement, which was filed by Deputy Attorney General Randy Kim, includes an additional $2.4 million in civil penalties that the state will suspend if the defendants comply with all material terms of the settlement.
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The state originally sued the operations in 2023 under then-Attorney General Michelle Henry after a number of consumer complaints.
In the lawsuit, the attorney general’s office alleged the businesses violated the state’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law and the Credit Services Act by aggressively up-selling costly procedures to vulnerable patients.
According to state authorities, Alpha Dental used high-pressure marketing tactics, including hosting “free dinner events,” to lure older adults.
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The company allegedly convinced patients to agree to expensive services while concealing the fact that traditional Medicare does not cover dental procedures.
The attorney general’s office alleged that Alpha Dental either failed to submit claims to Medicare or submitted claims that were routinely and correctly denied.
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For patients who could not afford out-of-pocket payments, Alpha Dental allegedly pressured them into third-party financing, authorities said.
The state alleged the company regularly opened and submitted loan applications on behalf of patients without their knowledge or consent, falsified information on application forms, and charged unlawful “cancellation fees.”
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The business also, according to the attorney general’s office, failed to provide mandatory statutory disclosures or required consumer protections, such as a five-day penalty-free cancellation window.
“The patients who were misled and deceived by Alpha Dental often ended up with large loans and bills they could not afford,” Attorney General Dave Sunday said in a statement. “Alpha Dental was fully aware that Medicare does not cover dental procedures and concealed that information while convincing patients to purchase costly procedures and services. Those predatory tactics end here – and Alpha Dental, under this settlement, will make patients whole.”
Credit: PA Internet News Service
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The proposed settlement terms prohibit Alpha Dental and its related entities from making fraudulent or misleading representations about insurance coverage, billing, or financing options.
The businesses are also barred from misrepresenting their affiliation with Medicare or other insurers, advertising guaranteed coverage for non-covered services, and assisting consumers with credit applications beyond informing them that third-party financing is optional.
An attorney for the businesses and Patel were not immediately available for comment.
