Home Depot has lost its ten-year-long battle with Blue Cross Blue Shield.
According to a verdict by the Supreme Court of the United States, Home Depot was officially denied its appeal of a $2.7 billion antitrust settlement against Blue Cross Blue Shield.
The Verdict
The Supreme Court released a verdict on the Home Depot vs Blue Cross Blue Shield case on June 24th, 2024. Blue Cross Blue Shield is an insurance company that provides services to more than 115 million Americans, making it one one of the biggest insurance companies in the country.
Home Depot is also one of the biggest American multinational retail corporations that provide appliances, tools, services and many more to people who require these services.
Serious Legal Claims
Without a doubt, this court verdict did not go how the lawyers at Home Depot wanted it to. In addition, the lawyers complained that the settlement would have negative consequences for the company, as it would be very hard for them to sue other brands for antitrust violations in the future.
However, Blue Cross Blue Shield has continued to deny all the allegations made by Home Depot since the beginning of the trial.
A Statement by the Spokesperson
After winning the case, a Blue Cross Blue Shield spokesman gave a statement to Newsweek shortly after. The statement read that the insurance company was very pleased with the decision by the Supreme Court.
They also recognized that it gave them the opportunity to begin implementing the settlement and move on after a long time. On the other hand, Home Depot refused to make any comments or statements.
Allegations of Company Conspiracies
Back in 2020, a settlement was reached by Blue Cross Blue Shield and Home Depot after a group of people and businesses who had health insurance through the company noted that the company had conspired with others to suppress competition.
The insurance company’s website stated that the Plaintiffs alleged that the Settling Defendants were accused of violating serious antitrust laws by agreeing to not compete with each other and be able to swell health insurance better.
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Statement on the Website
However, the website went further to clarify that the Settling Defendants strongly deny all the claims and allegations of any wrongdoing. Instead, they claim that their actions simply made it easier for customers to get healthcare by reducing the costs.
Therefore, both the Plaintiffs and Settling Defendants have reached an agreement for a Settlement in the court of law that would prevent extra expenses and dangers of continuous litigation.
Denied Petitions
This was undoubtedly one of the largest class-action settlements in the country’s history. Furthermore, the subscriber’s attorneys requested that the court also deny any petitions by Home Depot.
However, the Eleventh Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals also rejected the petition after Home Depot challenged the settlement in October 2023. Unsatisfied with the decision, Home Depot took the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
A Significant Change
According to the settlement, the insurance company will alter its business strategy and also establish a $2.67 billion settlement fund.
The website explained further that the Settling Defendants would agree to make changes in the way they do business to increase the business opportunities for the plaintiffs, Home Depot.
Eligibility and Inclusion Criteria
Those who had Blue Cross Blue Shield coverage between February 7th, 2008, and October 16th, 2020, may be eligible for this settlement. These include, but are not limited to, individuals, self-funded accounts, and insured groups.
However, there is a slight difference with self-funded accounts. Those who have such accounts have a period from September 1st, 2015, to October 16th, 2020.
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Exclusion Criteria
There are some exceptions to this claims and the website has put out the exclusion criteria. These include non-employees, beneficiaries (including minors) and beneficiaries.
In addition, the court totally dismissed a hearing of a challenge that asked for a $667 million fee to the class attorneys that worked out the deal on behalf of both of these big companies.
Some Attorneys Are Pleased
The chairman of Boies, Schiller & Flexner, David Boies, one of the lead class attorneys, also gave a statement regarding the outcome of the case after the long battle. He believes that this verdict was a great result for the health insurance system and the consumers who need it.
Therefore, he and his associate attorneys are very pleased with the outcome of the case.
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Varying Figures
One major reason the lawyers’ fees were rejected was that the figure they submitted to the court was much different from what it should have been.
The court carried out its own analysis and multiplied the hourly rate that they charged by the number of hours that they worked. The court’s calculation showed that it should not be more than $194 million.
Blue Cross Blue Shield Lawyers
The lawyers on the Blue Cross Blue Shield team were the ones who encouraged the judges to turn down both challenges.
This is because they believed that the court was making a proper decision and the restriction of future claims by the settlement was highly beneficial. Therefore, Home Depot and its lawyers were disappointed with this outcome but had to abide by the verdict.
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