Preliminary approval of Aetna HIV Privacy Breach settlement
May 23, 2018
On May 10, 2018, a federal court in Pennsylvania granted preliminary approval of the $17 million settlement of the Beckett v Aetna class action lawsuit. The lawsuit arose from an Aetna mailing last July, disclosing the HIV status of nearly 12,000 members through the large, transparent window on the envelope. The suit also charged Aetna with improperly transferring protected health information of over 13,000 members to its law firm and a mail vendor.
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Addiction Solutions Campaign Releases Opioid Settlement Recommendations
May 22, 2018
New York, NY: Released today, “Opioid Settlement Priorities; Recommendations from the Addiction Solutions Campaign” outlines several key strategies for investing …
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May 16th is National Call-In Day: Urge Your U.S. House Member to Oppose the “Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety Act” (H.R. 3545)
May 16, 2018
May 16th is National Call-In Day: Urge Your U.S. House Member to Oppose the “Overdose Prevention and Patient Safety Act” (H.R. 3545)
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DOJ settlement with skilled nursing facility: excluding people on addiction medication violates the ADA
May 14, 2018
The Legal Action Center hails the Department of Justice’s settlement which found that a skilled nursing facility violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by excluding a patient because the patient was treated with Suboxone for opioid use disorder (OUD).
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New York Bar Foundation Grant to LAC
May 7, 2018
New York: The New York Bar Foundation recently presented a grant of $4,500 to the Legal Action Center to support …
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PARITY RED FLAGS & COMPANION TOOL
March 29, 2018
When a health insurer denies or limits care for mental health and substance use disorders, is it violating the law? New tools from the Legal Action Center (LAC) help individuals seeking care and their loved ones, providers, and advocates understand their rights to coverage under federal and state parity laws, and what to do if an insurer is violating those rights.
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LAC response to President’s Opioid Initiative
March 20, 2018
March 20th, 2018: Yesterday in New Hampshire, President Trump outlined his administration’s three-pronged plan for addressing the opioid epidemic. While the strategy includes certain components critical to expanding access to evidence-based addiction care, it lacks specificity on health approaches and falls well short of the comprehensive public health response needed to address a crisis that is currently claiming the lives of over 175 Americans each day. Further, the plan’s emphasis on the failed punitive policies is out of step with what we know from decades of public health and public policy data.
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Over 160 Organizations Issue Joint Statement of Support for Parole Board
March 20, 2018
The undersigned join in strong support of the recent determination by the Parole Board to grant release to Mr. Herman Bell. This decision is the right outcome in this case based on the criteria used to determine parole. We must not allow politics to undermine the rule of law, nor should we discourage an agency from correctly performing its duties by allowing it to be bullied or cowed by the loudest voices and those with their own agendas.
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Director of LAC’s National HIRE Network highlighted in Women in Human Services Hall of Fame
March 13, 2018
Highlighted Women in Human Services Hall of Fame
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Protecting the Identity of Pardoned New Yorkers is the Right Thing to Do
February 20, 2018
26 undersigned criminal justice reform organizations strongly support Governor Cuomo’s pardon of 140 individuals who were convicted of one misdemeanor or non-violent felony when they were under the age of 18, and his decision to keep the names confidential. These individuals should now be allowed to move on with their lives without the stigma resulting from these convictions, which occurred when they were minors.
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