Dr. Brian Hyatt’s Trial on Medicaid Fraud Charges to Begin in April

A mugshot of Dr. Brian Hyatt at the Benton County jail (Benton County jail)

The trial in the criminal case against Dr. Brian Hyatt, the former chair of the state Medical Board, is set to start in April.

Hyatt, the owner of the now-closed Pinnacle Premier Psychiatry clinic in Rogers, is facing two counts of felony Medicaid fraud in Pulaski County Circuit Court. His trial is expected to last eight days.

His jury trial was set to start Sept. 17, 2024, but his attorney, Erin Cassinelli of Lassiter & Cassinelli of Little Rock, asked for a continuance.

The reason? She had a jury trial that unexpectedly lasted six weeks in June and July.

The jury trial now is expected to start on Wednesday, April 9, and end Friday, April 18.

The case is before Circuit Judge Leon Johnson.

The Class A felony counts stem from more than $300,000 in fraudulent Medicaid claims that Hyatt allegedly filed between Jan. 1, 2022, and April 29, 2022.

That was when he worked at the Northwest Medical Center-Springdale Inpatient Behavioral Health Unit.

Hyatt is accused of billing for Medicaid patients he didn’t see or spent little time with.

He has pleaded not guilty.

Meanwhile, former patients are still filing civil lawsuits against Hyatt.

Since the start of this year and through Jan. 22, seven more lawsuits have been filed against Hyatt, who is facing more than 100 separate cases against him.

In previous cases, Hyatt has denied the allegations of wrongdoing.