Uninsured Pricing Class Action Lawsuit
Against Catholic Healthcare West

Fall 2007 Update

There has been an appeal of the class action settlement filed by plaintiffs in Estupinian v. Catholic Healthcare West et al., a separate lawsuit on similar topics. The filing of the appeal by the Estupinian plaintiffs postpones resolution of the issues in this case. As a result, the settlement administrator cannot mail any refunds or continue with claims resolution until after the appeal is resolved.

The timing of the appeal is not within our control, and it could take many months to resolve. Although the written papers have been submitted, the Court of Appeal will hold a hearing and then may take several months to make a ruling. We do not expect this to be fully resolved until the first half of 2008. For more information on the current status of the appeal, please go to the California Court of Appeals website.

Introduction

In 2005, Plaintiffs Adrienne Dancer and Amber T. Howell filed a class action lawsuit against Defendant Catholic Healthcare West (“CHW”) on behalf of themselves and hundreds of thousands of uninsured patients at CHW hospitals in California, Nevada and Arizona. The complaint alleged that CHW charged uninsured patients excessive and unfair prices for medical treatment and services given at CHW-affiliated hospitals, and engaged in aggressive and unfair collections practices.

Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP; the Scruggs Law Firm; and Bartimus, Frickleton, Robertson & Gorny serve as counsel for Plaintiffs. CHW has denied wrongdoing and liability in the case.

For the latest information, please visit chwsettlement.com.

Court Grants Preliminary Approval of Class Action Settlement

On September 25, 2006, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Richard A. Kramer granted Plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary approval of the proposed class action settlement.

As part of the settlement, Class members will be entitled to make a claim for refunds or deductions of 35% from their prior hospital bills pursuant to discounted pricing and collections policies benefiting uninsured patients during the Class period. In addition, CHW has agreed to maintain its uninsured pricing and collections policies going forward for at least four years, among other things.

To read a copy of the Settlement Agreement, click here.

The Class Defined

The settlement Class consists of persons who:

Received hospital services from a Catholic Healthcare West hospital between July 1, 2001 and September 25, 2006;
Were uninsured at the time of treatment; and
Earned $250,000 or less in gross annual household income in the calendar year in which they received hospital services.

Additional Court Proceedings: Final Approval Granted on January 11, 2007

The Court granted final approval to the settlement. Commenting on the settlement, Lieff Cabraser attorney Kelly M. Dermody stated, "this settlement provides much-needed relief to hundreds of thousands of uninsured patients by substantially reducing their past medical bills and ensuring that in the future CHW maintains reasonable prices for all uninsured patients."

Further Information

Please visit chwsettlement.com to learn more about the settlement and answers to your questions.

Uninsured Pricing Class Action Lawsuit Against Catholic Healthcare West

Uninsured Pricing Class Action Lawsuit
Against Catholic Healthcare West