Health Director David R. Gifford yesterday suspended the license of Dr. Gary Anusavice, a Pawtucket dentist, alleging that he defrauded patients of tens of thousands of dollars through various billing and credit schemes.

Anusavice was also ordered to shut down his 1,000-patient practice, Premier Dental, at 451 Broadway, although no action was taken against the other dentists who work there.

According to the suspension order, Anusavice and Premier Dental committed credit-card fraud, engaged in "a bait-and-switch scheme," billed patients for services not rendered, deceived patients about the credit being provided to them, refused to respond to requests for care, refused to provide requested medical records, and performed unwanted dental services without the patients' knowledge.

The Health Department provided few details on the charges and did not describe the bait-and-switch scheme. Donald C. Williams, associate director for health services regulation, said the essence of the allegations involved misrepresentation of what was going on and lack of informed consent. He said "tens of thousands of dollars" were involved and that one patient's bill exceeded $20,000.

But William Lynch, Anusavice's lawyer, asserted that the entire case stemmed from billing disputes involving seven patients. The patients, he said, had signed credit agreements to get dental care, because they had no money or dental insurance.

"These are billing complaints," Lynch said. "The people are complaining after they get the work done that they didn't realize it was going to cost them so much money." He called it "outrageous" that the Health Department shut down the business before Anusavice has had a chance to defend himself.

In an unusual move, Lynch said he would ask a Superior Court judge today to block the suspension order. If that fails, Anusavice is entitled to a hearing before the Board of Examiners in Dentistry within 10 days.

Meanwhile, Michael J. Healey, spokesman for Attorney General Patrick C. Lynch, said that the office's consumer protection division was investigating Premier Dental, but he could not confirm whether a criminal probe was also under way. "There are definitely serious allegations there," Healey said.

The attorney general and Anusavice's lawyer are brothers. Asked about how that might affect any investigation, Healey said, "We feel confident that we have the head of our consumer protection unit and a lawyer in our civil division handling it -- that it's getting a fair and full review."

The attorney general's office had referred seven complaints against Anusavice to the state Board of Examiners in Dentistry. This fall the board held two sessions of a hearing, but before testimony ended, it decided to seek a summary suspension -- in which the health director pulls a practitioner's license without a hearing because he or she is deemed an "immediate danger" to the public.

Health officials decided this urgent action was needed because the department was continuing to receive additional patient complaints against Anusavice even as the closed-door hearing was under way, Williams said.

Additionally, he said, Anusavice's representatives had approached witnesses outside the hearing and offered to pay off their dental bills if they agreed not to testify.

"If it were a criminal case, it would be witness tampering, but it's not a criminal case," Williams said. "It certainly caused us significant concern."

Lynch, the lawyer, said it was "absolutely, unequivocably not true" that such offers had been made. Instead, he asserted, Anusavice had gone to the credit company and paid off the balances of a couple of patients, in what Lynch called a good-faith effort to satisfy unhappy clients.

Anusavice's license was suspended for five years in 1998. The suspension order accused him of unprofessional conduct but did not describe it. Williams said he believed the order resulted from the suspension of Anusavice's Massachusetts license for activities similar to the those alleged in yesterday's suspension. "It's the same scam," Williams said.

Anusavice currently has two offices in Massachusetts, according to Lynch.

Williams said that at least four dentists, in addition to Anusavice, worked at Premier Dental. "They're under investigation," he said. "We have a number of other dentists associated with the practice who are under active investigation based on current complaints."

Lynch called the suspension "so unfair."

"This is like being locked up after hearing only one side of the case. All it does is put two other dentists out of business and 12 or 15 other people out of work. . . .

"They've only heard from two witnesses, none of whom in my estimation confirm the allegations. We haven't even had an opportunity to present the board with our defense." Except for the seven complainants, Lynch asserted, Premier Dental patients are "perfectly happy."

Williams said that's not true. After the hearing began, several apparently unconnected people filed additional complaints against Anusavice, he said. Additionally, "There were all kinds of very serious allegations about the quality of the care being given."

"We think there are numerous other individuals out there who may have had similar experiences and similar concerns," Williams added. He urged those with complaints to call 222-5200.