Saturday, September 2, 2006

UW Med Ctr Settles Suit Over Billing

Settlement is reached in lawsuit over UW billing, Seattle Times, Sept. 2, 2006:

Patients who undergo minor surgery at the University of Washington Medical Center will receive a discount -- and will be able to get an estimate of their out-of-pocket costs ahead of time -- under a class-action lawsuit settlement announced Friday.

About 20,000 patients a year have such procedures, said John Phillips, a Seattle attorney who brought the lawsuit on behalf of Heidi Rothmeyer of Seattle. Rothmeyer challenged the medical center when it tacked onto her bill a hospital 'facility' fee for a dermatology procedure done at an outpatient clinic.
The article mentions a similar class action (still pending) against Virginia Mason Medical Center.

Mr. Phillips's firm, Phillips Law Group PLLC, also represented a class of uninsured patients in a class action against Providence Health System of Oregon. A settlement approved in June established fair pricing and charity care policies. See firm's statement.

The small firm (only four attorneys) often handles complex civil litigation. In addition to representing the classes of consumers in the cases above, it has also represented some very big corporate clients, including Philip Morris USA Inc., McDonald's Corp., and Home Depot U.S.A., Inc.

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