Citing Abuse Of Discretion By Insurer, 5th Circuit Affirms In ERISA Case

Mealey's (March 21, 2019, 9:26 AM EDT) -- NEW ORLEANS — A Texas federal judge did not abuse her discretion in finding, following a bench trial, that Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Louisiana (BCBSLA) violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act when it arbitrarily denied claims for covered services submitted by a company that facilitates in-office surgical procedures, a divided Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled March 19 (Encompass Office Solutions Inc. v. Louisiana Health Service & Indemnity Company, d/b/a Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Louisiana, 17-10736, 5th Cir., 2019 U.S. App. LEXIS 8165)....