The Anthem Companies,
Inc. (Tennessee)

No Company is Too Big to Play Fair.

On May 7, 2019, our law firm filed a case against The Anthem Companies, Inc. (“Anthem”) in the Western District of Tennessee on behalf of Utilization Management Nurses, Utilization Review Nurses, Medical Management Nurses, Nurse Reviewers, Nurse Reviewer Associates, and similar positions. The Named Plaintiff seeks overtime pay on behalf of herself and all other similarly situated nurses who worked for Anthem, or for one of its subsidiaries, in any location across the country. The Complaint alleges that Utilization Management Nurses, Utilization Review Nurses, Medical Management Nurses, Nurse Reviewers, Nurse Reviewer Associates, and similar positions were paid a salary and did not receive any overtime compensation for overtime hours worked as a result of Anthem’s unlawful practice of classifying them as exempt, salaried employees.

Anthem is a parent company to or otherwise affiliated with many other health insurance plans across the nation. These companies include but may not be limited to:

Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield
Anthem Blue Cross
Empire BlueCross BlueShield
Anthem Life Insurance
America’s 1st Choice
Amerigroup
Aspire Health
CareMore
Freedom Health
HealthLink
HealthSun
Optimum HealthCare
Simply Healthcare
UniCare.

The case was filed as a collective action under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), 29 U.S.C. § 216(b). The Plaintiffs seek unpaid overtime compensation and double damages.

To learn more about this case or about how to join it, feel free to contact the case clerk, Madeline Orozco, at (612) 256-3297 or morozco@nka.com.

This case is entitled Canaday et al. v. The Anthem Companies, Inc., Court File No. 1:19-cv-01084 (Western District of Tennessee)

Frequently Asked Questions

Q:How Do I Join This Case?

A:
If eligible, you may join the case by submitting a consent form. You can find the consent form for this case by selecting “Join the Case.”
Q:How Do I Know if I Am Eligible?

A:
The collective in this case is defined as any individual who, at any time from May 7, 2016 through present day: (1) worked in Tennessee for The Anthem Companies, Inc. (or one of its subsidiaries) in the Medical Management Nurse Family, (2) was paid a salary, (3) was treated as exempt from overtime laws, (4) worked/works over 40 hours during a week, and (5) was primarily responsible for performing medical necessity reviews.
Q:Do I Have to Pay Anything?

A:
You do not have to pay anything to our firm if you join the lawsuit. We are handling this case on a contingency basis. This means we will only be paid if the lawsuit is successful in obtaining relief either through a settlement or a final judgment, and that payment will only come out of that settlement or final judgment.
Q:What About Retaliation?

A:
The law protects you from retaliation for asserting your rights, and if you suffer retaliation, you may be able to assert additional claims. If you currently work for Anthem or any of its subsidiaries and you feel you are the victim of retaliation for participating in this lawsuit, contact Madeline Orozco, at (612) 256-3297 or morozco@nka.com.
Q:How Do I Learn More?

A:
To learn more about this case, feel free to contact Madeline Orozco, at (612) 256-3297 or morozco@nka.com.

Case Updates

September 3, 2020

The Anthem Companies Case Update

Earlier this year, the Court rejected our request to send notice of lawsuit to utilization review nurses who worked for Anthem anywhere in the country and instead, limited our potential collective group to utilization review nurses who worked for Anthem in Tennessee, the state where our lawsuit is filed. We sent notice to Tennessee workers in the spring, and the deadline to join has since passed. We disagree with the Court’s ruling and believe that our case should include workers across the country. The Court permitted us to file a petition for permission to appeal the decision that limited our collective to Tennessee workers to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. Our petition for permission to appeal was granted, and the Court of Appeals has given us a briefing schedule to submit written arguments regarding whether our collective can include utilization review nurses across the country or only those in Tennessee.

Our opening brief is due October 13, and Anthem’s response brief is due November 12. In the meantime, the case is paused until the Court of Appeals makes a ruling.

As always, please reach out with any questions and let us know if your contact information changes. We will continue to update you on the progress of this appeal.

August 23, 2019

The Anthem Companies, Inc. Update

The Court recently held a scheduling conference with the parties on August 8, 2019. The parties discussed waiting to enter specific deadlines in the case until after the Court decides our motion for conditional class certification. That motion will ask the Court to order Anthem to provide us with a list of all utilization review nurses who may be eligible to make a claim for their overtime pay.

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