The W.T. Johnson law firm has settled a $900,000 dental insurance class-action suit against two large insurance companies in Oklahoma.
The lawsuit accused United Life Insurance and Sterling Health Services of improperly marketing dental insurance policies to 1,600 Medicaid recipients in nursing homes in Oklahoma.
According to court documents, some of the nursing home residents who bought the dental insurance didn't even have teeth, and many were not even aware they had purchased the policies. The policies provided coverage that the patients already received under their Medicaid plans.
As a result of the settlement, every claimant will get full reimbursement of the money he or she spent on the dental insurance policies.
"We do a lot of nursing home work," said David Crowe, attorney with the W.T. Johnson team. "This is the second nursing home class action involving dental policies we've handled in Oklahoma. Nursing home residents are among the most vulnerable in society, and they're often victimized because of it. They were victims here."
Both defendants have ceased their operations in the state of Oklahoma in the wake of the settlement, according to Crowe.
