Tag fraud

Class Action alleging that a “Dummy Code” is used to “Bury” fees may result in BURIED TREA$URE for Self-insured employer sponsored group health plan clients of Aetna & OptumHealth.

On June 22, 2021, the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a ruling for Aetna and OptumHealth Care Solutions, resuscitating a potential class-action lawsuit alleging that they agreed to use a “dummy code” to bury unbillable administrative fees as billable medical treatment.

This case should serve as an alarm to all Self-insured group health plans, particularly those that give their TPA or carrier authority to pay claims benefits on their behalf because the alleged outrageous behavior by Aetna and OptumHealth raise questions as to whether all their self-insured plan clients may have unknowingly overpaid for certain claims and thus be entitled to significant recovery of Plan Assets.

According to court records:

The record on summary judgment is sufficient to sustain a finding that Aetna circumvented the Plan terms by “burying” the administrative fee it owed Optum in the dummy CPT code claims process.

Allegedly, after treating a patient, the health care provider submitted its claim to Optum for the services rendered. Optum then added a “dummy” CPT code to the claim to reflect a bundled rate fee, consisting of Optum’s administrative fee and the cost of the health care provider’s services. Optum would then forward the bundled rate fee claim to Aetna for its approval. In turn, this bundled rate fee would be paid based on the Plan’s responsibility framework.

In other words, Aetna and Optum allegedly colluded to hide administration fees by disguising them as Medical Service fees.

The court laid the groundwork for employer plan sponsors by opining, “Peters therefore withstood summary judgment on her claims for surcharge, disgorgement, and declaratory and injunctive relief under § 502(a)(1) and (3),

and for her claims on behalf of the Plan for surcharge, disgorgement, and declaratory and injunctive relief—as well as possibly restitution—under § 502(a)(2).”

Case info: Sandra M. Peters v. Aetna Inc., et al Case No.19-2085, US District Court of Appeals Fourth Circuit

The court goes on to say, “A reasonable factfinder could conclude that such action contradicted the obligations Aetna had contracted to fulfill under the terms of the Plan and the MSA,  effectively changing the terms of both without formal amendment of either….[and] that Optum was acting as a party in interest engaged in prohibited transactions” 

The judge went on to determine that “a reasonable factfinder could conclude that Aetna breached its duties based on the following four actions regarding the EOBs: (1) referring to Optum, and not the actual health care provider, as the “provider” of the medical services; (2) using “dummy codes” that did not represent actual medical services; (3)  misrepresenting the “amount billed” as including Optum’s administrative fee; and (4) describing the Optum rate, which included its administrative fee, as the amount that the Plan and its participants…owed for their claim.”

For over a decade, Avym Corp. has advocated for ERISA plan assets audit and embezzlement recovery education and consulting. Now with this case and the Supreme Court’s guidance on ERISA anti-fraud protection, we are ready to assist all medical providers and self-insured plans recover billions of dollars on behalf of hard-working Americans. To find out more about Avym Corporation’s Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Specialist (FOR) and Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Contractor (FORC) programs click here.

Aetna Fined $500,000 After Denying 93% of ER Claims in 2019

Aetna has been in the news quite a bit lately and it seems the insurance giant can’t get out of its own way. On August 25, 2020, the California Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) ordered Aetna to stop improperly denying emergency claims and fined Aetna $500,000 for repeatedly failing to correct the problem after a sampling of claims from 2019 found it had denied 93% that it deemed unnecessary.

According to the DMHC’s recent press release:

This is not the first time Aetna has run into problems for questionable practices. In 2018, then Aetna Medical Director, Iinuma Jay Ken MD, admitted under oath, he never looked at patients’ records when deciding whether to approve or deny care. This revelation prompted then California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, to launch an investigation into Aetna’s practices.

During his videotaped deposition in October 2016, Iinuma — who signed the pre-authorization denial — said he never read Washington’s medical records and knew next to nothing about his disorder. He further said he’s not sure what the symptoms are for the disorder or what might happen if treatment is suddenly stopped for a patient. “Do I know what happens?” the doctor said. “Again, I’m not sure. … I don’t treat it.”

Just months after Aetna’s then medical director admitted he denied coverage for treatments without ever bothering to look at the patients’ medical records, an Oklahoma jury slammed Aetna with a stunning $25.5 Million verdict for recklessly denying medical coverage for proton beam therapy. The jury awarded the family of the deceased patient $15.5 million in emotional distress and another $10 million in punitive damages after denying proton beam therapy to Aetna policyholder Orrana Cunningham as being “investigational” or “experimental,” despite years of research and hundreds of medical experts who say otherwise.

The case details are very common and happen everyday across the nation: Patient pays for health insurance, patient gets sick and seeks treatment, insurer denies claim under the guise that services are deemed experimental or investigational.

According to the family’s attorney, Doug Terry,

“[this] case represents/exposes so much of what is wrong with health insurance,…This case gave the jury a look behind the curtain so they could see what goes on at a health insurance company when they deny claims.  The evidence showed Aetna’s denial of her claim involved overworked, under-qualified doctors working in the interest of their employer’s bottom line who are compensated in part based on the profitability of the company.”

Aetna was acquired by CVS Health in 2018.  The subsequent jump in CVS Health’s profits of more than 50% has been partly attributed to the fact that elective procedures Aetna health plan pays for were postponed or delayed amid the spread of the Coronavirus strain Covid-19. CVS Health’s net income soared 54% to $2.9 billion in the second quarter compared to $1.9 billion in the year-ago period, the company said in its earnings report issued Wednesday. It is not immediately clear if the emergency room denials have significantly contributed to earnings.

Avym has helped Self-Insured Health Plans recover millions from TPAs that engage in questionable practices. Avym advocates for ERISA plan assets audit and embezzlement recovery education and consulting. With new Supreme Court guidance on ERISA anti-fraud protection, we are ready to assist all self-insured plans recover billions of dollars of self-insured plan assets on behalf of hard-working Americans. To find out more about Avym’s Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Specialist (FOR) and Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Contractor (FORC) programs contact us.

Medical Providers Fire Back At Cigna’s Motion, Telling The Judge That “Cigna Does Not Follow The Law, And It Misrepresents How It Actually Administers The Plans.”

In the Reply Brief of Plaintiffs Advanced Gynecology and Laparoscopy of North Jersey, et al v. Cigna Health and Life Insurance, Medical Providers allege that Cigna appears to not only ignore Plan and legal requirements of the Self-Insured Health Plans which it administers but also employs multiple schemes to pay substantially less for covered charges already acknowledged as accepted and processed under the Plan terms, ultimately improperly shifting the financial burden to the patients, according to court records.

“Cigna shifts financial responsibility for covered expenses onto the backs of patients, their employers, and Plaintiffs, while Cigna’s profits grow.”

In this case, which we have written about before, a group of out-of-network Medical Providers sued Cigna for RICO and ERISA violations, alleging CIGNA accepts the out-of-network provider claims at the full billed charges and requests the same amount from the corresponding Self-Insured Health Plans. However, instead of paying the Provider or member, CIGNA hires a Repricing Company to try and negotiate a reduction.

The Providers further allege that if they refuse to negotiate, CIGNA pays the claim at an exorbitantly low level but appears to keep the difference between what was removed from the Self-Insured Health Plan and what was paid to the Providers. In an attempt to conceal this from both patients and Self-Insured Health Plans, CIGNA issues Electronic Remittance Advice (ERA) or paper Explanation of Benefits forms (EOB) misrepresenting the claim balance, or the difference between what was removed from the Plan and paid to the Providers, as a “Discount” to the members. The Subscriber EOBs certify the member is not responsible for the claim balance, simultaneously; the Provider ERAs represent the claim balance to the Providers, as a member liability or “Amount Not Covered”. The suit also alleges that CIGNA’s claims process for out-of-network claims, including the Cigna Claims, violates the “HIPAA standard transaction rules under 45 C.F.R. § 164”, by using incorrect “45” coding combinations”.

Case info: Advanced Gynecology and Laparoscopy of North Jersey.et. al. v. Cigna Health and Life Insurance; Case Number: 2:19-cv-22234 in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Filed December 31, 2019.

Cigna filed a Motion to Dismiss on May 06, 2020. The Medical Providers filed this reply to Cigna’s motion on July, 24, 2020: Reply brief of Plaintiffs Advanced Gynecology and Laparoscopy of North Jersey, et al v. Cigna Health and Life Insurance; 2:19-cv-22234; Doc 54, filed 7/24/2020.

The “Fictitious Contracting Scheme”: According to the Providers, Cigna Administered Health Plans and Subscribers are misled into believing that Cigna’s underpayments of out-of-network claims are legitimate because of an in-network contract or negotiated agreement with a third-party “Repricing Company”. The Providers allege Cigna falsely represents to patients that Cigna negotiated “discounts” with the out-of-network Medical Providers and that “Cigna negotiates discounts with health care professionals and facilities to help you save money.” Moreover, on the Provider ERA forms for the same transactions, Cigna uses the so-called “CO-45” code combination, with “CO” signifying “Contractual Obligation” and “-45” signifying “Charge exceeds fee schedule/maximum allowable or contracted legislated fee arrangement.” Cigna argues that this code combination is properly used when the medical provider’s “charge exceeds either the contracted in-network rate or the out-of-network maximum allowable rate like the MRC or R&C.”

“But when Cigna applies the “CO-45” coding combinations to amounts described as “discounts” on the patient EOBs, Cigna is falsely representing that Cigna “contracted” for the reduction.“

The “Repricing Reduction Scheme”: The Providers also allege that Cigna misleads its own clients (Cigna Administered Self-Insured Health Plans) into paying “cost-containment” fees to Cigna and Repricing Companies calculated as a percentage of the underpayment in relation to the value of the Providers’ claims. Yet, while Cigna represents that “applying these discounts avoids balance billing and substantially reduces the patient’s out-of-pocket cost,” Cigna pays itself and the Repricing Companies cost-containment fees whether or not the cost-containment process saves the Self-Insured Health Plan money. Ironically, Cigna has been at the forefront of initiating litigation against out-of-network providers for not collecting patient liabilities in full. Interestingly, this case alleges that Cigna misrepresents the balance of unpaid claims as “Discounts” to its members.

The “Contradictory EOB Scheme”: Here the Providers allege that Cigna has tried to confuse and mislead them as well as patients, through false and inconsistent statements on Cigna-issued EOB forms issued to patients and ERA forms issued to the Providers. Cigna tells the Providers on the ERA forms that the amounts Cigna has held back are “not covered” by the Plans or are subject to “adjustments,” and the patient owes the balance. However, Cigna’s EOB forms issued to the patients for the same claim, report that Providers agreed to a “discount” and the patient has “saved” the rest.

According to court records, “it is impossible to reconcile Cigna’s statements on the patient EOBs—that a “discount” was applied to their claim and the patient “saved” the amount of the discount—with Cigna’s statements on the provider ERAs for the same claims, that make clear that the patient has not “saved” anything because they show that the patient owes a huge balance bill.”

The “Forced Negotiations Scheme”: The fourth Scheme alleges that Cigna forces out-of-network Medical Providers to enter into negotiations for payment of valid claims, with the goal of either coercing or wearing down the Providers to accept drastic underpayments. Allegedly, Cigna conspires with repricing companies to misrepresent deep discounts, saying in some instances that the services are not covered. According to the Providers, Cigna’s processing system is set up to automatically send all out-of-network claims to the Repricing Companies. The repricing companies, in turn, send the Providers letters threatening that the services will not be covered at all, or that the Providers will be reimbursed at a percentage of the Medicare rate. Even worse, if the settlement offers are rejected, Cigna falsely declares large portions of the claim “not covered.”

All ERISA health plans, medical providers and patients must educate themselves in order to understand the facts of these cases.

For years large insurers’ controversial processes have been an issue for out-of-network providers across the nation. Now, self-insured plans are starting to feel the pain of these same, potentially illegal practices.

Health plans must be proactive in validating that plan assets are used to pay for their member’s medical expenses or otherwise get returned to their plan.

Avym has helped Self-Insured Health Plans recover millions from TPAs that engage in questionable practices. Avym advocates for ERISA plan assets audit and embezzlement recovery education and consulting. With new Supreme Court guidance on ERISA anti-fraud protection, we are ready to assist all self-insured plans recover billions of dollars of self-insured plan assets on behalf of hard-working Americans. To find out more about Avym’s Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Specialist (FOR) and Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Contractor (FORC) programs contact us.

Over the years healthcare in the US has evolved into an extremely complex, non-transparent and convoluted process. For even the most informed, understanding this baffling process is nearly impossible. Avym’s mission is to help demystify the US healthcare industry. As consultants in the healthcare sector, we advocate for education, transparency and compliance.

As such, we advise – and count among our clients – all parties that interact within the healthcare industry and include both medical providers and self-insured employer health plans. We even advise patients. Truthfully, we are happy to help anyone that reaches out to us.

On occasion, we write and share opinion pieces discussing industry trends and issues. Our goal is to provide an open transparent dialogue on these issues and trends, and we encourage all perspectives in order to assist everyone in search of information on related topics.

Sometimes we write about issues presented in legal cases, and while we offer our opinion of the issues to the best of our ability, we neither endorse nor disparage the practices of any parties to the suit. Inevitably, however, some entities may not agree with our opinions. In these situations, we strive to create an environment where a transparent and open dialogue can occur, welcoming insights and perspectives that differ from ours.

Recently, we wrote an opinion article describing a particular court case in an attempt to offer insight and educate industry professionals on the many issues that concern them on a daily basis. The original opinion article, titled “Don’t Leave Fox Guarding Employer Plan” which can be found here, and here.

Unfortunately, and in spite of our best efforts, an entity who was never named in our article but who was a party to the lawsuit referenced in our article, chose to send us a letter threatening legal action. Consistent with our core values of transparency and in an effort to correct any mischaracterization of our article from factual inaccuracies in said letter, we have decided to share the letter in order to help clarify and resolve any confusion.

Here is a copy of the letter:

Our article never suggested AMPS or any other party to this particular lawsuit is, or was, acting in an unscrupulous manner. Curiously, AMPS views the article as defamatory, in-spite of the fact the article never mentions AMPS (or any of the defendants) by name.

Additionally, as mentioned before, we advise medical providers as well as self-insured employer health plans. We strive to empower self-insured health plans by espousing the importance of education on federal and state rules & regulations, trends, risks, and other valuable information in order to reduce wasteful spending while at the same time, allowing all Americans access to affordable, timely medical care.

Lastly, an important point to consider is our opinion piece does indeed make clear the final disposition of the case, where the courts ruled in favor of the defendants and against the self-insured employer plan plaintiffs.

During this historically critical time in American healthcare, where there is a lack of transparent information, we advocate for transparency to include dissemination of important information and open discourse. We are under the impression this is a mutual goal of all industry professionals and were confused as to why AMPS would choose to send a threatening letter, mischaracterizing our opinions and intent, instead of choosing to engage in a transparent, productive discussion.

Avym will continue to advocate for ERISA plan assets audit and embezzlement recovery education and consulting. With new Supreme Court guidance on ERISA anti-fraud protection, we are ready to assist all self-insured plans recover billions of dollars of self-insured plan assets, on behalf of hard-working Americans.

This extraordinary lawsuit comes on the heels of a massive settlement, where CIGNA and American Specialty Health agreed to pay $20M after they were accused of misrepresenting medical expenses by concealing material information.

CIGNA Health and Life Insurance Company is one of the “big five” which represents the five largest health insurers in the United States. Prior to acquiring Express Scripts in 2018, Cigna relied heavily on its Third Party Administrator platform, providing services to health plans of all sizes for private commercial health plans as well as state and local government plans.

Among CIGNA’s customers are many large, well known, national companies that reach across different sectors of the economy, from banking to manufacturing to retailers.

According to the 150 page complaint: “Plaintiffs bring this lawsuit to expose Cigna’s brazen embezzlement and conversion schemes, through which it maximizes profits by defrauding patients, healthcare providers, and health plans of insurance out of tens of millions of dollars every year… The result is that Cigna succeeds in shifting financial responsibility for covered expenses onto the backs of patients, their employers, and Plaintiffs, while Cigna gets rich.”

This latest case seems to be the culmination of a spate of recent cases alleging similar violations. This troubling pattern may be an indication that no employer sector is immune to possibly fraudulent claims processing practices. All of this seems to provide more evidence of increased scrutiny for self-insured health benefits that has long been commonplace for retirement benefits.

Case info: Advanced Gynecology and Laparoscopy of North Jersey.et. al. v. Cigna Health and Life Insurance; Case Number: 2:19-cv-22234 in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Filed December 31, 2019.

In summary, the lawsuit alleges that CIGNA accepts the out-of-network provider’s claims at the full billed charges and requests the same amount from the self-insured health plan. However, instead of paying the medical provider or member, CIGNA hires a Repricing Company to try and negotiate a reduction. If the provider refuses to negotiate, CIGNA pays the claim at an exorbitantly low level but appears to keep the difference between what was removed from the self-insured health plan and what was paid to the medical providers. In an attempt to conceal this from the patient and self-insured health plan, CIGNA issued Electronic Remittance Advice or paper Explanation of Benefits forms (collectively, the “EOB”) misrepresent the balance as “Discount” to the members, certifying the member is not responsible for the balance, while simultaneously representing the balance to the Plaintiffs as member liability or “Amount Not Covered”.

Astonishingly, the complaint alleges that CIGNA, after being advised of these anomalies, not only refused to correct the issues but instructed the medical provider plaintiffs to sue to rectify the situation! According to the court documents:

“After numerous detailed communications with Cigna management in which Plaintiffs protested Cigna’s unlawful processes and procedures, Cigna informed Plaintiffs that it has no compliance department capable of addressing these issues, and encouraged Plaintiffs to initiate legal action in order to prompt Cigna to act. Plaintiffs have decided to follow Cigna’s suggestion.”

The complaint further alleges that CIGNA has violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, (RICO) through four distinct schemes:

1. misrepresenting that a contract or agreement exists between the Plaintiffs and CIGNA or its vendor “Repricing Company”;
2. conspiring with its vendor “Repricing Companies” to submit fraudulent “Savings Fees” to the self-insured health plan;
3. attempting to conceal the scheme by altering the Explanation of Benefits (EOB), sent to the medical provider and to the patient for the same claims, where the patient’s EOB represents the outstanding balance as a negotiated “Discount”, however the medical provider’s EOB shows the outstanding balance as the “Amount Not Covered”;
4. again conspiring with its vendor “Repricing Company” by coercing the Plaintiffs to accept exorbitantly low reimbursements;

Ironically, CIGNA has been at the forefront of initiating litigation against out-of-network providers for not collecting patient liabilities in full. Yet, this suit alleges CIGNA misrepresents the balance of unpaid claims as “Discounts” to its members.

This case also alleges that CIGNA’s claims process for out-of-network claims, including the Cigna Claims, violates the “HIPAA standard transaction rules under 45 C.F.R. § 164”, by using incorrect “45” coding combinations”. The complaint also alleges CIGNA has violated the “uniform operating rules for the exchange of Automated Clearing House (“ACH”) electronic fund transfer payments among financial institutions that are used in accordance with Federal Reserve regulations and maintained by the Federal Reserve and the Electronic Payments Associations, known as the National Automated Clearing House Association or “NACHA.”

The first scheme allegedly involves CIGNA’s use of the “mails or wires to misrepresent to Plaintiffs, Cigna Subscribers, and the Cigna Plans, that Cigna underpaid Plaintiffs’ claims either because of a contract between an individual Plaintiff and Cigna as an in-network provider or with a third-party leasing contractor or negotiator couched as a repricing company (“Repricing Company”) to accept discounted rates (the “Fictitious Contracting Scheme”).”

The Plaintiffs allege they are not in-network nor have they agreed to any reductions with the “Repricing Company”. According to court records, “While repricing of in-network claims is permissible when there is an existing contract between a provider and Cigna, Plaintiffs are out-of-network providers who have not contracted with Cigna or any Repricing Company. Cigna profits from improperly withholding these payments from Plaintiffs by transferring ERISA Cigna Plan trust assets to a Cigna controlled bank account (which it otherwise is entitled to do under contracts between the ERISA Cigna Plans and Cigna) and earning interest off of funds that are rightfully Plaintiffs’ under the ERISA Cigna Plans. Cigna also embezzles or converts ERISA Cigna Plan trust assets by charging the ERISA Cigna Plans improper “cost-containment” fees.”

The complaint goes on to allege that CIGNA’s second scheme to defraud involves its conspiring with the Repricing Companies to “underpay Plaintiffs’ Cigna Claims via a euphemistically named “cost-containment process” that it misrepresents to the Cigna ERISA Plans as a cost-savings mechanism to save the Cigna ERISA Plans money on out-of-network claims administration (the “Repricing Reduction Scheme”).”

Plaintiffs allege that through this scheme, every out-of-network claim is sent through the wires to a Repricing Company where the Repricing Company recommends to CIGNA that CIGNA pay a deeply slashed reimbursement rate. CIGNA invariably adopts that recommendation and processes the claim for (under)payment. Additionally, the complaint alleges that “Cigna’s contracts with the Cigna ERISA Plans falsely state that this process is only applied to claims for which the Repricing Company has an existing contract with an out-of-network provider. Cigna uses these gross misrepresentations as cover for its embezzlement or conversion of ERISA Cigna Plan trust assets in the guise of cost-containment fees based on a percentage of the “savings.” Cigna then pays a commission to the Repricing Companies that is similarly based on a percentage of “savings.”

According to Plaintiff’s allegations, CIGNA’s third scheme to defraud involves its false and inconsistent statements on CIGNA-issued EOBs and is referred to as the “Contradictory EOB Scheme”. When processing a claim by an out-of-network provider, the suit alleges, “Cigna will state on an ERA or EOB issued to a healthcare provider (a “Provider EOB”) that the amounts wrongfully retained by Cigna are not covered under the terms of the pertinent Cigna ERISA Plan or are subject to certain “adjustments” that are inconsistent with the terms of the Cigna ERISA Plans. But on the EOBs issued to the Cigna Subscribers for the same claims (the “Patient EOB”), Cigna will report completely different information. Cigna may falsely state that Plaintiffs are either contracted with Cigna to accept certain rates, or have agreed with Cigna or a Repricing Company to accept a “discount;” both complete fabrications.”

By way of the example provided in the complaint, it appears CIGNA has told the provider:

“the unlucky Cigna Subscriber owes it $60,316.07 as the amount not covered under the Subscriber’s Plan, but has told the Subscriber that he/she owes the provider only $895.25 because Cigna negotiated a 98% discount with the provider. In doing this, Cigna misrepresents to Cigna Subscribers that the amounts improperly adjusted by Cigna are “discounts.” This misrepresentation appears on most Cigna Claim Patient EOBs.”

The suit alleges CIGNA’s fourth scheme to defraud involves its conspiracy with the Repricing Companies to force out-of-network providers like Plaintiffs to enter into negotiations for payment of valid claims, with the goal of either coercing or wearing down the providers so they accept drastic underpayments for the claims (the “Forced Negotiations Scheme”). In conspiracy with CIGNA, the Repricing Companies, such as Zelis or Medical Audit & Review Solutions (MARS), send offer letters through the mails designed to intimidate and coerce out-of-network providers such as Plaintiffs to accept the settlement offers. In some instances, the Repricing Companies will threaten that the services provided to the Cigna Subscriber will not be covered at all, or that they will be reimbursed at a percentage of the Medicare rate. And, as expected, the Pricing Companies will reimburse the providers even grossly insufficient amounts only if the provider waives all rights to additional payment.

According to the complaint, “the following is an example of Cigna’s Forced Negotiations Scheme, “whereby a provider Plaintiff rejected an offer of payment for $30,550 of total incurred charges of $41,680 from MARS, a Repricing Company contracted by Cigna. Once the provider refused the settlement offer, Cigna processed the claim, improperly misstated that the Cigna Plan covering the Cigna Subscriber only paid a percentage of Medicare, and reimbursed only $1,858.55, or 4.5% of the total incurred charges for the services rendered by the provider Plaintiff.”

“Through these four schemes, Cigna improperly deprives Plaintiffs and the Cigna ERISA Plans of funds and profits by engaging in any or all of the following conduct, among others: (1) embezzling and/or converting the amount characterized as a “discount” on the Patient EOB that is rightfully due and owing to the Plaintiffs under the terms of the Cigna ERISA Plans; (2) earning interest on these amounts, and (3) wrongfully profiting through embezzlement and/or conversion of ERISA Cigna Plan trust assets based on cost containment fees calculated as a percentage of the “discounted” amount.”

-According to court records

All ERISA health plans, medical providers and patients must educate themselves in order to understand the facts of these cases. For years, Cigna’s processes have been a thorny issue for out-of-network providers across the nation and now, self-insured plans are starting to feel the pain of these potentially illegal practices.

Medical providers must be proactive and adopt compliant practices and policies. Health plans must also be proactive in validating that plan assets are used to pay for their member’s medical expenses or otherwise get returned to their plan, and not applied to cover shortfalls in another plan.

Avym Corp. has advocated for ERISA plan assets audit and embezzlement recovery education and consulting. With new Supreme Court guidance on ERISA anti-fraud protection, we are ready to assist all self-insured plans recover billions of dollars of self-insured plan assets, on behalf of hard-working Americans. To find out more about Avym Corporation’s Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Specialist (FOR) and Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Contractor (FORC) programs contact us.

Originally Published by By ROI-NJ, By Anjalee Khemlani; Trenton | Jul 1, 2019 at 10:00 am : http://www.roi-nj.com/2019/07/01/healthcare/third-party-auditor-bill-signed-into-law-despite-insurers-opposition/

Third-party auditor bill signed into law

A bill that some insurers lobbied quietly to quash made its way through the Legislature and was signed by Gov. Phil Murphy on Sunday.

The bill calls for a third-party auditor to real-time audit the State Health Benefits Plan and School Employees Health Benefits Plan.

It was first introduced in October 2018 by state Sen. Paul Sarlo (D-Wood-Ridge), and came from a report commissioned by a New Jersey doctor that alleged

health insurers were skimming off the top of claims payments for the SHBP and SEHBP.

The report was published by California-based AVYM.

ROI-NJ previously reported that the state’s contracts with Aetna and Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey are set to expire this year, allowing a revamp of the Request for Proposal process and changing the type of contracts the state has with insurers who administer the state plans.

The Office of Legislative Services said in its fiscal analysis of the bill that it could not put a specific savings amount from the audited claims, even though

the AVYM report alleges savings of more than $1 million to the state.

“Hiring a third-party medical claims reviewer to provide regular, frequent and ongoing review and oversight of the claims process, which process includes, but is not limited to, the receipt, management, adjudication and payment of claims, serves the best interests of the state, participating employers and the thousands of employees and their dependents covered under the (SHBP and SEHBP),” according to the legislation.

The goal is to have a medical claims reviewer hired in time to review claims from plans that will be in effect in January 2020.

In Unprecedented Move, DOL Exercises Authority to Issue Cease and Desist Order Under Section 521 of ERISA, Shut Down Fiduciaries Accused of Misconduct, “Healthcare Madoff” Scheme

The U.S. Department of Labor obtained a Temporary Restraining Order in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois against Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangement (MEWA) service providers for allegedly failing to pay more than $26 million in member’s health bills while keeping a substantial amount of money for themselves, then siphoning off those funds to offshore Bermuda accounts. The court also ordered 2 banks to freeze 14 bank accounts that were alleged to have plan assets in them.

The court ordered Black Wolf Consulting, AEU Holdings and one of its subsidiaries removed and barred from serving as fiduciaries or service providers to the individual employer plans that participate in the AEU Holdings LLC Employee Benefit Plan, a Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangement (MEWA) established by the defendants.

The court’s order immediately appointed an independent fiduciary to oversee the MEWA’s operations, marshal and control the assets of the MEWA as it relates to the underlying participant plans, perform an accounting of the MEWA’s financial position, and determine the MEWA’s ability to pay outstanding participant health claims, according to the DOL.

The order comes on the heels of the DOL lawsuit filed on November 2, 2017 seeking declaratory and injunctive relief including a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction to remove the fiduciaries. The Complaint also alleges multiple violations of ERISA including, using plan assets to pay excessive fees and expenses, assessing undisclosed fees to the contribution amounts, failing or refusing to pay approximately $16 million for member’s medical claims, then transferring unpaid monies to offshore bank accounts in Bermuda.

Black Wolf kept anywhere from 17 to 44 percent of the money employers and employees paid toward premiums, according to the DOL complaint.

At its height, the MEWA covered approximately 14,000 participants and beneficiaries. These participants worked for more than 560 employers in 36 different states. However the increased backlog of unpaid claims created significant problems for many members as doctors refused treatments because of unpaid bills and many members were sent to collections accounts, according to the DOL.  

Additionally, the DOL issued a cease and desist order that prevents sub-brokers and aggregators working on behalf of the MEWA from marketing it to prospective employers or from enrolling new employers. The Secretary has the authority to issue an ex parte cease and desist order pursuant to ERISA § 521(a), 29 U.S.C. § 1151(a), and its implementing regulation, 29 C.F.R. § 2560.521-1. This authority applies only to a MEWA, and the cease and desist order may be issued whenever the Secretary finds reasonable cause to believe, among other things, that the respondent(s) engaged in conduct that creates an immediate danger to public safety or welfare within the meaning of § 2560.521-1(b)(3).  29 C.F.R. § 2560.521-1(c)(1)(i)(B).

According to the DOL Memorandum:

“Over $15 million in processed claims from 2016 and over $11 million in processed claims for 2017 remain unpaid. During the same time period as these claims have gone unpaid, AEU and Black Wolf have enriched themselves substantially by paying themselves and other entities millions of dollars in “fees.” Meanwhile, hundreds of unsuspecting employers have joined the AEU Plan to provide affordable medical benefits for their employees, only to have their employees be saddled with thousands of dollars in unpaid medical claims-some facing escalating collections actions and others unable to obtain life-saving treatment.“

The Memorandum goes on to point out:

“This results in thousands of participants incurring additional medical claims that will never be paid. Current and former participants report being turned away by their doctors because claims have gone unpaid. They have had to forego life-saving treatments for cancer and other illnesses. Parents who have just given birth are saddled with unanticipated medical claims at the same time they are trying to care for their newborn children. Collections agencies are calling and knocking at their doors. Many fear for their family’s future financial security. Despite the over $26 million in current unpaid claims and the harm facing these participants, Defendants continue to seek out new, unsuspecting employers to feed what is to them, a very profitable enterprise.”

Original DOL Press Release

These new ERISA embezzlement cases are part of a growing trend consistent with the court’s Hi-Lex decisions and as well as other cases we have written about before.

This lawsuit in particular should serve as a warning and wake up call for all Plan Administrators to continually monitor their TPAs in accordance with the Plan Administrator’s statutory fiduciary duties and to discharge its duties with respect to a plan solely in the interest of the participants for the exclusive purpose of providing benefits to them.

For over 7 years, Avym Corp. has advocated for ERISA plan assets audit and embezzlement recovery education and consulting. With new Supreme Court guidance on ERISA anti-fraud protection, we are ready to assist all self-insured plans recover billions of dollars of self-insured plan assets, on behalf of hard-working Americans. To find out more about Avym Corporation’s Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Specialist (FOR) and Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Contractor (FORC) programs click here.

Third Party Administrator, MagnaCare to return $14.5 million to Health Plan Clients after getting sued in federal court, alleging “MagnaCare breached its fiduciary duties and committed prohibited transactions, including dealing with plan assets in its own interest.”

In a case we have written about before and as part of a greater, ongoing slew of self-insured health plans suing their third party administrators, MagnaCare, agreed to return $14.5 million to its health plan clients, as part of a settlement agreement with the US Department of Labor (DOL) – with possible additional payments of $4.5 million based upon business volume through 2019.  This agreement comes on the heels of the DOL lawsuit, filed in 2016, alleging multiple violations of ERISA, including committing prohibited transactions and acting in its own interest with plan assets, among other violations.

According to the DOL and court records:

“MagnaCare charged fees that were not disclosed to its ERISA plan clients…The plans paid MagnaCare the full amount, yet MagnaCare remitted the lower charges to the providers and retained the undisclosed markup”

This case is just the tip of the national healthcare crisis iceberg. Recent reports have indicated most employers, particularly large employers will continue to offer health insurance as a benefit, in spite of the fact self-insured health plans are spending more on health benefits. Additionally, while self-insuring is common among large employers, an increasing number of smaller employers are self-insuring as well. Based on these facts, and with an increasing number of patients forced into bankruptcy due to unpaid medical bills, employer plans, medical providers and patients need to understand the implication of this case and others like it.

It’s a well-known fact from federal court documents and in healthcare industry news reports, that Billion$ of ERISA plan claims payments from self-insured plans may have been recouped or offset by self-insured plan TPA’s for the TPA’s fully-insured accounts. Additionally, many Billion$ more may have been similarly siphoned off based on “Fake PPO” discounts or  Phantom “Savings” fees.

DOL Case info and copy of “Complaint”: Acosta v. MagnaCare Administrative Services, LLC and MagnaCare LLC Civil Action No.:  1:16-cv-07695-DAB

Copy of “Consent Order”: United States DOL v. Magnacare Administrative Servcies, LLC and Magnacare, LLC-Consent Order

The court documents also contain allegations that MagnaCare actually siphoned off money that was supposed to go towards the payment for medical claims:

“At times relevant to this Complaint, MagnaCare acted in own interest when it kept the difference between the Plan Charges and the Provider Rates as additional compensation without disclosing the amounts to the Plans.”

According to court records, MagnaCare LLC, and MagnaCare Administrative Services, LLC (MagnaCare) is a third party administrator of health plans or TPA, and provides administrative and claim adjudication services as well as “Network Access” services which purportedly enables its clients to obtain healthcare from providers at discounted rates.  

This case was undoubtedly spurred on by a previous lawsuit against MagnaCare, by its own self-insured plan client. In that case, the plaintiff alleged:

“MagnaCare represented to Plaintiffs in a written contract between the parties that providers of diagnostic laboratory and ancillary services had “accepted” a “fee schedule” which included a “management fee” for MagnaCare. In fact, the providers had never “accepted’ a fee schedule containing a “management foe” for MagnaCare. Rather, the providers had agreed to a fee schedule, which was a fraction of the amounts collected by MagnaCare from Plaintiffs. MagnaCare – without disclosure to Plaintiffs or the providers – simply misappropriated the difference between what Plaintiffs paid MagnaCare and what MagnaCare negotiated to pay the providers.” 

Court case info: UNITED TEAMSTER FUND, et al v. Magnacare Administrative Services, LLC et al, Case 1:13-CV-06062-WHP-FM, First Amended Complaint (FAC), filed on Oct. 29, 2015, original Complaint, filed on august 27, 2013,  in United States District Court Southern District Of New York.

These lawsuits come on the heels of the Oct. 20, 2014 U.S. Supreme Court decision to deny all appeals on a BCBSM’s $6.1 million fraud judgment for a self-insured ERISA plan by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Six Circuit, upholding the decision by the District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. On May 14, 2014, the federal appeals court (Sixth Cir. 2014) upheld the district court’s $6.1 million decision for Hi-Lex, a self-insured ERISA plan, against BCBSM for violating ERISA in prohibited transactions and fiduciary fraud, according to court documents.

Hi-Lex Controls, Inc. v. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, (SC Case #. 14-168, 6th Cir. Case #: 13-1773, 13-1859).

These cases together with the ERISA case listed below, offer insight into the healthcare industry’s prevalent overpayment offset wars:  

Peterson, D.C. et al v. UnitedHealth Group Inc. et al, U.S. District Court, U.S. District of Minnesota (DMN) CIVIL DOCKET FOR CASE #: 0:14-cv-02101-PJS-BRT

These new ERISA embezzlement cases are part of a growing trend consistent with the court’s Hi-Lex decisions.

This lawsuit in particular should serve as a warning and wake up call for all Plan Administrators to continually monitor their TPAs in accordance with the Plan Administrator’s statutory fiduciary duties and to discharge its duties with respect to a plan solely in the interest of the participants for the exclusive purpose of providing benefits to them.

For over 7 years, Avym Corp. has advocated for ERISA plan assets audit and embezzlement recovery education and consulting. With new Supreme Court guidance on ERISA anti-fraud protection, we are ready to assist all self-insured plans recover billions of dollars of self-insured plan assets, on behalf of hard-working Americans. To find out more about Avym Corporation’s Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Specialist (FOR) and Fiduciary Overpayment Recovery Contractor (FORC) programs click here.