Appellate courts to hear med-mal, disability cases next week
Indiana’s appellate courts are set to hear arguments next week in a case related to medical malpractice and one dealing with disability issues arising under Kentucky law.
Health & Insurance
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Health care headache: Ruling bars ISBA from offering insurance to solos, but leaders seek options
When the federal district court in Washington, D.C., ruled in a dispute over the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), Indiana State Bar Association president Todd Spurgeon heard the screech of a locomotive coming to sudden stop.
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Anthem paying $594M to settle antitrust litigation, but deal terms might fuel growth
Some investment analysts and health care observers say changes to Blue Cross Blue Shield rules that are stipulated in a half-billion-dollar settlement are so favorable to Indianapolis-based Anthem’s growth prospects that they view the deal as a huge win for the company.
High court seems likely to leave to health care law in place
The Supreme Court seemed likely Tuesday to leave in place the bulk of the Affordable Care Act, including key protections for pre-existing health conditions and subsidized insurance premiums that affect tens of millions of Americans.
Biden defends health care law as high court mulls its fate
President-elect Joe Biden is championing the Obama administration’s signature health law as it goes before the Supreme Court in a case that could overturn it.
Indiana receives 10-year extension of Healthy Indiana Plan
The state of Indiana has received federal approval to continue for 10 more years its Healthy Indiana Plan medical savings account that enrolls more than 572,000 low-income adult Hoosiers.
COA partly revives injured woman’s claims against chiropractic clinic
The Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded entry of summary judgment in favor of an Indianapolis chiropractic clinic in a case brought by a woman injured in a car accident.
Facing a conservative turn, Supreme Court opens new term
The Supreme Court opens Monday a new term with Republicans on the cusp of realizing a dream 50 years in the making, a solid conservative majority that might roll back abortion rights, expand gun rights and shrink the power of government.
Anthem agrees to pay $39.5M in latest settlement over 2015 hacking
Anthem Inc. has agreed to pay a group of states $39.5 million to settle claims the health insurer failed to safeguard its data, a breach that led to a massive computer hacking in 2015 that compromised the private information of 78.8 million customers and former customers.
In Anthem-Cigna ‘soap opera,’ judge hands damages to neither
A Delaware judge rebuffed efforts by both Cigna Corp. and Anthem Inc. to collect billions over their failed merger, saying Cigna had breached its obligations but the merger was likely to have been blocked on antitrust grounds anyway.
COA reverses in part for hospital in summary judgment dispute
The Indiana Court of Appeals has affirmed in part the denial of an insurance company’s motion for summary judgment against a hospital. But it reversed a denial of the hospital’s own motion after finding its was entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
SCOTUS sides with Trump in religious birth control opt-out case
The United States Supreme Court on Wednesday sided with the Trump administration in its effort to allow employers who cite religious or moral objections to opt out of providing no-cost birth control to women as required by the Affordable Care Act.
‘Narrow decision’ leads justices to reverse in health care payment dispute
A dialysis provider will have another chance to claim the money it believes it is owed after the Indiana Supreme Court pointed to its own precedent and found the trial court erred by entering summary judgment for the defendants.
Justice Department suit alleges Anthem overbilled in its popular Medicare Advantage plans
A new lawsuit alleges that Indianapolis-based Anthem Inc., one of the nation’s largest providers of Medicare Advantage plans for seniors, defrauded the U.S. government of millions of dollars over four years by falsely certifying the accuracy of incorrect diagnosis data from doctors and other health providers.
COA affirms for insurer in UIM coverage case
A woman who was injured in a car crash and racked up a hefty medical bill did not convince the Indiana Court of Appeals that it should reverse a trial court’s judgment in favor of her insurance company.
Sizable nondisability: 7th Circuit declines to find ADA violations in obese workers’ claims
Despite increasing obesity among Americans, employers have not seen a corresponding rise in workplace discrimination complaints. But attorneys suspect workers are opting not to sue because such cases may be difficult to prove.
Legislation aimed at reducing health care costs passes, but impact could be weak
Despite lengthy debates on reducing health care costs this year, Indiana lawmakers eliminated the provision business leaders said was likely to have the most impact.
Justices split on denial of transfer to med-mal wrongful death case
The Indiana Supreme Court has split in the denial of transfer in a case involving a fatal altercation between a psychiatric patient and a caregiver, with two justices dissenting from the holding that ensuing wrongful-death litigation should be brought under the Medical Malpractice Act.
Indiana hospital bill proposal rolled back amid protest
Indiana lawmakers on Monday rolled back a proposal that could cut how much insurance companies pay for medical services performed at offices located away from a hospital’s main campus.
Lawmakers consider hospital billing regulations
As Indiana lawmakers wrestle with various ideas to reduce health care costs, one proposal that business groups say would have an immediate impact has drawn opposition from hospitals.
Some doctors worried by Indiana ‘surprise’ billing proposal
Some Indiana doctors are raising fears about possible loss of emergency services under a plan to limit “surprise” medical bills that can plague patients who have been unknowingly treated by providers from outside their insurance networks.