Ibrahim Al-Qawaqneh, D.D.S.
Outcome
Dentist convicted July 2014 by nolo contendere plea to felony Medi-Cal unlawful remuneration charge; HHS-OIG excluded September 2015; DEA issued Order to Show Cause November 2018; DEA revoked Certificate of Registration No. BA6641472 effective March 22, 2021.
Details
Ibrahim Al-Qawaqneh, D.D.S. — Medi-Cal Fraud Conviction and DEA Registration Revocation (2014–2021)
Outcome: Ibrahim Al-Qawaqneh, D.D.S. of Anaheim, California, entered a nolo contendere plea on July 2, 2014, to a felony charge of Offering Unlawful Medi-Cal Remuneration; HHS-OIG excluded him from federal healthcare programs in September 2015; DEA issued an Order to Show Cause on November 20, 2018; and DEA revoked his Certificate of Registration No. BA6641472, effective March 22, 2021.
Ibrahim Al-Qawaqneh was registered as a dentist practitioner in Schedules II-V under DEA Certificate of Registration No. BA6641472 at 1719 W. Romneya Drive, Anaheim, California. On July 2, 2014, he entered a plea of nolo contendere in the Superior Court of California, County of Orange, to a felony charge of Offering Unlawful Medi-Cal Remuneration — a Medicaid anti-kickback offense related to his dental practice.
As a result of the felony conviction, on September 30, 2015, the HHS Office of Inspector General excluded Al-Qawaqneh from participation in federal healthcare programs. Despite this exclusion, his DEA registration was not immediately revoked.
On November 20, 2018, the DEA issued an Order to Show Cause proposing revocation of his DEA Certificate of Registration. An Administrative Law Judge issued a Recommended Ruling dated June 21, 2019. The DEA found that Al-Qawaqneh's failure to accept responsibility for his criminal misconduct and his lack of demonstrated remorse were factors weighing in favor of revocation. His registration had already expired on June 30, 2020 because he did not submit a renewal application. The DEA revoked the registration effective March 22, 2021, published in the Federal Register on February 19, 2021.
Primary Source: Ibrahim Al-Qawaqneh, D.D.S.; Decision and Order (Fed. Reg. Feb. 19, 2021)
How Crucible Prevents This
This case demonstrates the cascade failure when a Medi-Cal fraud conviction triggers HHS-OIG exclusion, yet the DEA registration went unenforced for years until a separate Order to Show Cause proceeding. Crucible's HHS-OIG exclusion monitoring integration would have automatically flagged the exclusion in 2015 and triggered a DEA registration review, closing the gap between the criminal conviction and the eventual DEA revocation.
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