News

WMH Secures Consecutive Health Insurance Rulings

Delaware Superior Court ensures retirees can keep their existing health insurance benefits

Delaware Order follows similar ruling secured by WMH in New York State

NEW YORK [October 20, 2022] – Walden Macht & Haran, LLP (WMH) secured another victory for the healthcare rights of elderly and disabled retirees, this time for approximately 30,000 retired Delaware state workers who would have been forced to switch their health insurance from traditional Medicare to a materially worse Medicare Advantage plan.

In an interim order issued on October 19, 2022, the Delaware Superior Court ruled that the State violated the Delaware Administrative Procedure Act by significantly reducing the health insurance benefits of Medicare-eligible retirees without first providing them an opportunity to review and comment on the drastic change to their healthcare.

Delaware retiree Tom Penoza—a plaintiff in the case along with Karen Peterson and the non-profit RISE Delaware, Inc.—stated: “We are relieved and thrilled that the Court halted this unwelcome change to our health insurance benefits.  This is justice for the retirees who worked for their existing benefits, who were promised these benefits, and who rightly believed that together, we could fight back.”

WMH recently obtained a similar victory in New York, where it prevented New York City from forcing hundreds of thousands of retired municipal workers into a Medicare Advantage plan by withdrawing funding for their existing health insurance.

In both cases, the retirees were represented by WMH attorney Jake Gardener with assistance from co-counsel at Pollock Cohen LLP.

Said Gardener: “The lawsuits in Delaware and New York highlight a disturbing nationwide trend of state and local governments attempting to save money by forcing retired civil servants off of traditional Medicare and onto Medicare Advantage plans, which have a limited network of doctors and rules preventing patients from receiving treatments unless and until the private insurance companies administering the plans deem them to be medically necessary. However, the lawsuits also reveal the fierce determination of brave retirees to stand up and fight for their healthcare rights, as well as courts’ willingness to rule in their favor.”

Gardener (a former NYC firefighter) and WMH are proud to represent retired government workers who, after dedicating their lives to public service, have been unlawfully deprived of the health insurance benefits to which they are entitled and on which they have long relied. The firm stands at the ready to protect workers’ healthcare rights and ensure that state and local authorities strictly comply with the various laws designed to safeguard these rights.

About Walden Macht & Haran, LLP

Walden Macht & Haran LLP (www.wmhlaw.com) is a leading boutique law firm specializing in white collar criminal defense and investigations, complex commercial disputes, monitorships and corporate compliance. Headquartered in New York and with offices in Philadelphia, the firm combines the extensive expertise of partners with backgrounds in both the public and private sphere to offer strategic, trusted counsel to our clients’ most complex legal matters.

Media Contact

Jennifer Besada, 212.335.2979, jbesada@wmhlaw.com

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