A federal judge in Pennsylvania approved a class-action lawsuit against Aetna on May 25 for allegedly violating the Employee Retirement Income Security Act by forcing disability benefits recipients to return their personal injury payments.
Aetna had argued that certain potential class members should be excluded because their health plans were sponsored by different companies, but the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania certified the class for 48 people because the plan language was similar enough between them all.
The plaintiff who filed for class status had originally received over $50,000 in long-term disability benefits from her Aetna-sponsored group plan after she was temporarily disabled in a car accident in 2015. The plaintiff then sued the other actor in the accident and won a monetary settlement. In a 2019 lawsuit, the plaintiff claims Aetna sought reimbursement for the disability benefits, which she negotiated down to $30,000. The plaintiff sued under the grounds that the group plan's language did not allow Aetna to reclaim the disability payments.
The plaintiff said the class action is needed "because Aetna engaged in a common course of conduct by seeking reimbursement from individuals" with similar plans.