NC Patients Sue Insurer Over Claims Of Large, Surprise Bills

Six Charlotte-area patients claim that their insurance company, UnitedHealth Group, stuck them with unexpectedly large bills after dropping their anesthesiologists out of its network.

The patients, along with Providence Anesthesiology Associates, filed a class-action lawsuit against UnitedHealth Group in Mecklenburg County Superior Court Monday.

Providence, which is now out-of-network for UnitedHealth, is the primary provider of anesthesia services at Novant Health.

Novant Health is in-network with UnitedHealth — meaning patients with UnitedHealth insurance plans may find themselves at an in-network facility without an in-network anesthesia service.

But UnitedHealth disputes the lawsuit’s allegations, saying Providence is the one billing patients ‘exorbitant charges.’