What do Class Members Not Like About the Blue Cross Settlement?

Objections are common amongst large class actions. An objection is a list of complaints from a class member that seeks to remedy the settlement so the class can get more and are often overlooked because they lack numerosity. If there are 10 objections in a class size of 100,000, the judge typically won’t weigh the objections heavily since that is an incredibly small portion of the class size. Objections can lead to cases being dismissed, however, so just because you file a claim, it doesn’t guarantee you will get a payment. 

Here, we see another example of an objection in the Blue Cross Blue Shield case. Let’s take a look at the objections brought forward by the objector, C. Demuth.

The objection states that since BCBS never formally admitted fault in the settlement, they are now able to write off the costs of the $2.7 billion settlement under the category of “costs of doing business” on their tax forms. What this means is that since they put this cost into that category on their tax forms they will have to make up for it in order to continue to make their shareholders money. In order to make this business back, the objection argues that they will raise premiums again. The objection says that those who still use BCBS and are also class members will essentially be paying back their claim over time due to this fact. 

The objector wants the payment to come from a dividend. Since they believe BCBS will raise the premiums again next year, even though the lawsuit they are facing is for doing that exact thing, and have the shareholders pay the claim indirectly, they believe BCBS is not actually paying the claim. They think the payment should come directly from the paychecks of executives. 

There are numerous problems with the claim filing process that Demuth perceives. They state that the claim filing form has changed recently, causing claimants a lot of confusion and stress. Demuth also thinks it should be up to BCBS to provide claimants with their information, even though they are the ones being sued. Another qualm they have is that it is hard to get into contact with the attorneys via email or phone. Lastly, they do not know how much proportionately they will get which makes them angry and confused. 

In the end of the objection, Demuth calls for the entire settlement to be dismissed. They declare this will stop BCBS from doing future harm to policyholders and will be a warning to plaintiff lawyers to not take deals on their behalf.

Objections are common in class action lawsuits and CCC is here to track the latest news regarding objections in cases you are involved in. If an objection goes through and an appeal is granted then the case is dismissed and no one gets a claim. These are things that we track and are also a big part of the reason why we people sell their claim to us. Selling your claim guarantees payout in the settlement and gets you your money up front instead of running the risk of getting nothing at all.