Judge Orders Horizon to Let Public See Details Behind OMNIA Insurance Plan
Publisher: NJ Spotlight
April 12, 2018
Michael Furey was quoted in an article, "Judge Orders Horizon to Let Public See Details Behind OMNIA Insurance Plan," published by NJ Spotlight. As noted in the article, an April 10 ruling from Bergen County Superior Court Judge Robert Contillo indicated that Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield must make public a report from consultants at McKinsey & Co. used to develop Horizon's OMNIA plan. In his decision, Contillo wrote "There is a broad, legitimate, immediate public interest in how health care is delivered in the State, how patients are insured, and how they are incentivized to be evaluated, tested and treated by particular providers. Nothing I deal with in Chancery has more immediate, acute public impact [than] these matters."
Furey told NJ Spotlight that yesterday's decision is important because it will allow anyone to review Horizon's process. The document, he said, presents a very different picture than what the insurance company has painted for the public and lawmakers. "With Judge Contillo's decision, the public should finally have an opportunity to learn the truth behind OMNIA," he said. "If Horizon truly believes that healthcare is an important issue to the public, then it should stop its efforts to hide the documents that explain what happened and comply with the Court's order directing their release."
Furey and Dennis LaFiura are representing three of the remaining plaintiff hospitals involved in this case: CentraState Medical Center in Freehold; Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck; and Valley Hospital in Ridgewood. The case, Centrastate Medical Center Inc. et al v. Horizon Healthcare Services Inc. is pending in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Chancery Division.
