UnitedHealth to Pay $10.8M After Panel Upholds Arbitration Award in Health Care Providers’ Action


Late last week, Lash Goldberg, counsel for TeamHealth, announced a jury verdict in their favor over insurance giant UnitedHealth in a press release provided to Law Street Media. 

The case took place in Hillsborough County, Florida. The “grossly undercompensated healthcare providers” were granted $10.8 million in relief. The release states that “The verdict ends five years of litigation, with United held liable for violating Florida law by underpaying front-line clinicians for years.”

“The judges considered evidence of United’s egregious underpayments for services in Florida following United’s unilateral termination of the parties’ in-network agreement in May 2017. The judges awarded the medical group $10.8 million in compensatory damages for underpaid claims for services rendered to United’s members through February 2020,” the release says.

Lash Goldberg says they are satisfied with the court’s ruling, as well as the legal team working on the case. “We are pleased to have secured this important victory for TeamHealth and its clinicians… This was hard-fought litigation—United aggressively defended the case and was represented by two national law firms and a multitude of lawyers. United contested nearly every issue in the case from the outset, wrongly removing the case to federal court, and filing three interlocutory appeals during the litigation.”

Partner Justin Fineberg commented that “UnitedHealthcare’s refusal to pay reasonable value for vital healthcare services places an undue financial burden on healthcare providers and patients… This is a widespread problem, and we look forward to continuing to represent TeamHealth providers and hold UnitedHealthcare accountable in cases across the country.”

UnitedHealth is represented by Akerman and O’Melveny & Myers.