A California court ruled against United Behavioral Health, a UnitedHealth Group subsidiary, ending a multiyear class-action lawsuit and requiring the provider pay out over $20 million, according to Bloomberg.
United Behavioral Health originally received the complaint in 2014 for wrongfully denying mental health claims, according to court documents.
In 2019, the court confirmed United Behavioral Health's plan policies violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, and subsequently ordered the company to reprocess thousands of claims that were incorrectly reviewed, according to Bloomberg.
Now, following a Jan. 5 ruling, United Behavioral Health must pay $19.6 million in attorneys; fees and $1.2 million in costs. The company argued that because the class won a "purely procedural victory," it would not have to pay out fees and costs — a motion the judge denied.
United Behavioral Health had not responded to Becker's requests for comment at the time of publication.