A lawsuit brought by two individuals with hearing loss against Kaiser Foundation Health Plan alleges that the insurance company discriminated against them in its denial of coverage for hearing treatments other than cochlear implants, according to an article in the San Francisco Chronicle.
A federal appeals court who heard the case determined that “insurance companies cannot discriminate against disabled people by broadly denying coverage for the types of treatment they need,” according to the article, but said the plaintiffs may not be entitled to coverage because “not everyone with a hearing loss is disabled.” Kaiser, as a provider under the Affordable Care Act (ACA), is not permitted to design plans to exclude disabled individuals.
An attorney for the plaintiffs said her clients “ can revise and refile their suit to implicate Kaiser in disability discrimination.”
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Source: San Francisco Chronicle
