Singapore — Teo Eu Gene, a dentist who was sentenced to prison last year for filing false claims for dental treatments has been officially removed from the dentistry registry.
He will be prohibited from practising dentistry in Singapore for at least three years. After this period, he can seek to have his name reinstated to the registry, according to a statement released by the Singapore Dental Council on Friday, Jun 25.
Teo was the first individual to be imprisoned last year for defrauding the government under the Community Health Assist Scheme (Chas). He was found guilty on 25 counts of making fraudulent Chas claims. As such, he was sentenced to 46 weeks in prison. These claims were for dental treatments performed between 2014 and 2015.
His activities led to be more than $18,000 unlawfully disbursed by two polyclinic companies – SingHealth Polyclinics and National Healthcare Group Polyclinics – that process and refund Chas claims on behalf of the Ministry of Health.
The Singapore Dental Council announced on Friday that a disciplinary hearing against Teo, who previously worked at Phoenix Dental Surgery clinics, was held on April 12.
Teo’s dishonest behaviour and convictions had a significant impact on the profession’s image, according to the disciplinary body.
The council stated that because his case appeared to be the first to be presented before the disciplinary committee, it was critical to set the right standards by emphasising that such situations must be dealt with harshly.
He was removed from the Register of Dentists Wednesday, Jun 23. Teo has also been required to pay the charges of the procedures, and the costs of lawyers to the Singapore Dental Council.
The council advised all dental practitioners to be familiar with the rules and regulations that regulate dental procedures.
It went on to say that experts should follow the terms of the profession’s code of ethics, as well as the Ministry of Health’s directions and recommendations.
Divyanshi Singh is an intern at The Independent SG /TISG