A group of 33 NorthStar anesthesia providers filed a lawsuit against Aetna and Cigna over an alleged $4.1 million in No Surprises Act underpayments, according to Dec. 8 filings in Connecticut’s U.S. District Court.
NorthStar said it found claims that were either never paid or paid late without interest following independent dispute resolution determinations. The providers claim Cigna owes over $2.3 million and Aetna owes over $1.7 million. According to the law, payments must be made within 30 days of a decision.
“These general business practices deprive NorthStar of the money NorthStar has earned, force NorthStar to expend resources trying to collect the money and ultimately prevent NorthStar from investing resources in patient care,” the complaint said.
The Elevance Health Public Policy Institute recently published findings supporting how providers overwhelmingly win No Surprises disputes that reach arbitration, reinforcing payer concerns.
“Congress designed the No Surprises Act to protect American patients from exorbitant, unfair billing practices, not to pad private equity-backed provider profits on the backs of patients,” an Aetna spokesperson told Becker’s. “Research clearly shows that some provider groups are abusing the arbitration process intended to resolve surprise billing disputes, saddling American employers and consumers with billions of dollars in unnecessary costs.”
Becker’s contacted Cigna for comment and will update this story if more information becomes available.
