Family Attorney Says He'll Sue Insurance Company That Initially Denied 17-Year-Old Girl a Liver Transplant
The family of a 17-year-old girl who died hours after her health insurer reversed a decision and said it would pay for a liver transplant plans to sue the company, their attorney said Friday.
Nataline Sarkisyan died Thursday at about 6 p.m. at the University of California, Los Angeles Medical Center. She had been in a vegetative state for weeks, said her mother, Hilda.
"She passed away, and the insurance (company) is responsible for this," she said.
Nataline had been battling leukemia and received a bone marrow transplant from her brother. She developed a complication that caused her liver to fail.
Doctors at UCLA determined she needed a transplant and sent a letter to Cigna Corp.'s Cigna HealthCare on Dec. 11. The Philadelphia-based health insurance company denied payment for the transplant, saying the procedure was experimental and outside the scope of coverage.
On Thursday, about 150 teenagers and nurses protested outside Cigna's office in Glendale. As the protesters rallied, the company reversed its decision and said it would approve the transplant.
Despite the reversal, CIGNA said in an e-mail statement before she died that there was a lack of medical evidence showing the procedure would work in Nataline's case.
"Our hearts go out to Nataline and her family, as they endure this terrible ordeal," the company said. " ... CIGNA HealthCare has decided to make an exception in this rare and unusual case and we will provide coverage should she proceed with the requested liver transplant."
Officials with CIGNA could not immediately be reached for comment Thursday night.
Robocop's Comment:
This is happening way too many times. HMO's/Insurance Companies are making MEDICAL decisions. For killing too many people for refusing the service that they PAID for through premiums, CIGNA Healthcare is the "Douche Of The Week". To be honest, CIGNA just represents the real Douche Of The Week, the Health Insurance Industry. They are a runaway train, which follows a course with NO consequences to fear. This is immoral. Behavior like this will even get demands of government control from conservatives like myself. Why? Because I am a human being. May those claims adjusters have a shitty Christmas.
