"[T]he court observed that the employer began tracking the plaintiff's mistakes well before she went on FMLA leave, and discovered additional errors while she was on such leave. In addition, the court noted that '[w]aiting to confirm the results of the investigation supports a finding that the [employer] terminated the [plaintiff] based on performance,' and not as retaliation for taking FMLA leave." [Anderson v. Nations Lending Corp., No. 21-1885 (7th Cir. Mar. 9, 2022)]  MORE >>

"The Ninth Circuit considered, in large part, whether United's internal guidelines for mental health and substance abuse coverage contravened generally accepted standards of care. It held that United's interpretation -- that the plans did not require consistency with the generally accepted standards of care -- was not unreasonable." [Wit, et al. v. United Behavioral Health, Nos. 20-17363, 21-15193, 20-17364, 21-15194 (9th Cir. Mar. 22, 2022; unpub.)]  MORE >>

"Supplemental insurance enrollees continue to be overwhelmingly satisfied with their plans and rate them highly. Consumers are particularly satisfied with the service they receive from health insurance providers.... Having supplemental insurance has prevented consumers from experiencing financial hardships or being forced to make choices between their health and their financial well-being."  MORE >>

"Health insurance plans and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), middlemen who work for and are owned by the same companies as health insurance plans, continue to mislead people about their role in determining the price you pay at the pharmacy counter. Their shell game makes it easier to deflect attention from how they spend the mammoth discounts -- about a third of a trillion dollars (more than half of the initial price of medicines) and why those growing discounts and rebates aren't being used to lower the price you pay at the pharmacy counter."  MORE >>

17 pages. "Rooted in the common law of trusts, the fiduciary exception is based upon the rationale that the benefit of any legal advice obtained by a trustee regarding matters of plan administration runs to the beneficiaries. ... Applying the ERISA fiduciary's role to the role of trustees at common law, courts have relied upon one of two related rationales in recognizing the fiduciary exception."  MORE >>