Issue: Insurance cancellations

Lieff Cabraser is currently investigating consumer complaints by women who allegedly have had their health insurance policy improperly canceled after being diagnosed with breast cancer. The alleged cancellations, also called rescissions, were issued by health insurance carriers that are subsidiaries of WellPoint.

One of every nine Americans is a member of a WellPoint-affiliated health plan — more than any other health insurance company in the United States. Anthem, Anthem Blue Cross, and Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield are among the insurance companies owned by Wellpoint.

On April 22, 2010, a Reuters investigative report discussed how Wellpoint was allegedly:

using a computer algorithm that automatically targeted … policyholder[s] recently diagnosed with breast cancer. The software triggered an immediate fraud investigation, as the company searched for some pretext to drop their policies, according to government regulators and investigators. Once the women were singled out, they say, the insurer then canceled their policies based on either erroneous or flimsy information.