Major Insurance Company Faces Lawsuit For Allegedly Tricking Customers Into Canceling Their Policies

[babylonsister]

http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/11/07/2906861/major-insurance-company-lawsuit/

Major Insurance Company Faces Lawsuit For Allegedly Tricking Customers Into Canceling Their Policies

By Sy Mukherjee
November 7, 2013 at 11:08 am


A major California insurance company is being sued by two consumers alleging that they were tricked into dropping their health coverage when they could have remained on their preferred plans under Obamacare, the Los Angeles Times reports.

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“Blue Cross successfully enticed tens of thousands of its individual policyholders to switch out of their grandfathered health plans and forever lose their protected grandfathered status,” states the lawsuit. “Blue Cross concealed information about the consequences of switching plans and intentionally misled its policyholders to encourage the replacement of grandfathered policies.”

snip//


“This is about an insurance company manipulating the situation and concealing the facts,” said William Shernoff, an attorney for both the plaintiffs, in an interview with the Los Angeles Times. “We are askinsnipg the court to give our clients and everybody else in the same situation the option of going back to their grandfathered policies.”

California’s Anthem Blue Cross has regularly come under fire for shoddy business practices. Last year, the company requested a double-digit rate hike on customers’ premiums despite the fact that employers and other health insurers said that only modest adjustments were necessary in order to keep up with health care inflation.

[louis-t]

1. I haven't changed my BCBS yet.

I don't believe a word they say. They've already tried to get me to sign up for a plan I know nothing about, not even how much it would cost.

[BlueStreak]

2. Same here, and they are pulling some real BS on the exchange

For the policies they put on the exchange in Indianapolis, they put together a new coverage network that includes only the lowest rated hospital system, and only about 5% of the docs practicing in the county. No choices. All their ACA plans have that stripped down network. And there is only one other competitor in the exchange, so they figure they can get away with it. The other competitor is a local company, but they have a really great network, so that's probably what I'm going to do.

Don't reward the criminals.

[BrotherIvan]

3. I have Anthem Blue Cross and am rather confused

I spoke with them about my options because my grandfathered plan has DOUBLED in the last year. The guy kept saying the same thing, basically that the new Bronze and Silver plans had such stripped networks and hinted the insurance was worthless. If you go to the hospital outside of the LA County network, you're hosed. Out of the country, not covered. Out of network, you pay 80% of costs if it is even covered.

I never use my insurance as I am very healthy, but I don't know what to do. I basically keep it as emergency coverage. But it now costs over half my monthly rent. But if I carry bronze or silver insurance that is worthless, what is the use of paying for it at all?

So anyone that finds any information, if you could please pass it on I would be so grateful. It's very obvious that the insurance companies are doing their damnedest to lie about what's what. Any help someone can pass on would be much appreciated.

[William769]

4. Now thats some bullshit!

[justice1]

5. I suspect Blue Cross Blue Shield only dropped in ALEC in name only.

[Scuba]

6. For-profit insurance executives are criminals. This is not news.