Metro East Dentist Charged with Health Care Fraud

A St. Louis-area dentist has been charged with executing a wide-ranging health care fraud scheme

over several years. Dr. Yun Sup Kim, 48, of St. Louis, is under federal indictment for allegedly

defrauding Illinois Medicaid out of hundreds of thousands of dollars from his dental office in

Swansea, Illinois. The 20-page indictment charges Kim with 12 counts of health care fraud and one

count of wire fraud in connection with his dental practice.

According to the indictment, from September 2014 through the end of 2017, Kim repeatedly billed

Illinois Medicaid for cavity fillings and surgical tooth extractions he never actually performed.

The experiences of 10 former patients are outlined in the indictment, including several where Kim

allegedly claimed to have filled cavities on more than half the patient’s teeth in one sitting. The

indictment charges those claims were false and alleges that, in many instances, the teeth Kim

claimed to have filled never had cavities to begin with. Kim is also accused of falsifying dates of

service on numerous occasions to evade billing rules involving reimbursements for dental sealants.

On one particular occasion in 2016, the indictment alleges that Kim billed Illinois Medicaid for a

dental exam, fluoride treatment, and tooth cleaning on a 10-month old girl who was not a patient

and had only two teeth at the time. This incident is the subject of the wire fraud count, which

alleges that the claims were fraudulent and the services never actually rendered.

An indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be

innocent of a charge until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.

Kim is due in federal court for his initial appearance on September 12 at 2:00 pm. A trial date has

not been set. Each charge of health care fraud is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a

$250,000 fine. The wire fraud count carries a 20-year statutory maximum prison term. Supervised

release on each count is capped at three years. The indictment also seeks forfeiture of

over $700,000 in fraudulent proceeds of the charged scheme.

The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Illinois States Police Medicaid Fraud

Control Unit, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – Office of Inspector General, and

the FBI. Assistant U.S. Attorney Nathan D. Stump is prosecuting the case