There have been several important recent developments in how courts are assessing health benefit claims brought under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. In Dwyer v. United Healthcare Insurance Co.,[1] a case involving a claim for residential behavior health treatment for an eating disorder, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on Sept. […]
Under the best of circumstances, plaintiffs face a difficult challenge when they seek to overturn health benefit claim denials. But recent developments in litigation involving health benefits — specifically benefits for mental health treatment — have sent a message to health insurers that they need to be more transparent in adjudicating claims. […]
Proton beam radiation therapy is used to treat various forms of cancer. Rather than using X-rays, proton therapy directs focused energy from protons at tumors. […]
Many disability insurance claimants mistakenly believe that the provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA or Obamacare), which prohibits insurance companies from excluding coverage based on pre-existing conditions, is applicable to disability insurance. […]
The federal Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act,[1] which affects health benefits by requiring equal coverage for the treatment of both physiologic conditions and behavioral health disorders, including substance use disorders, has been a growing topic of litigation […]
A concurrence to a Sept. 22 opinion issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit[1] in a case involving a health insurance raises serious concerns about the manner in which courts review benefit claim denials under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act […]