(NewsNation) — Three UnitedHealth-owned insurance companies must pay more than $165 million for deceptive conduct that misled thousands of consumers into unknowingly buying supplemental health insurance in Massachusetts.
In a December order, Suffolk County Superior Court Judge Helene Kazanjian said penalties stem from marketing practices between 2012 and 2016 by HealthMarkets and its two subsidiaries, The Chesapeake Life Insurance Company and HealthMarkets Insurance Agency, which were found to violate the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act.
The ruling follows a non-jury trial to assess damages after the companies were already deemed liable.
Kazanjian said sales agents were trained to hide policy costs from consumers, calling it “egregious,” and “targeting vulnerable consumers who could least afford their products.
The nearly $50.1 million in restitution and $115.1 million in civil penalties awarded by Kazanjian was less than the $368 million sought by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s office.
Campbell hailed Kazanjian’s decision, saying it awarded the state the largest civil penalties it has ever recovered under the state’s consumer protection law.
In a statement, UnitedHealthcare said it would appeal the decision, which is “clearly unsupported by the evidence and contrary to established Massachusetts law,” according to Reuters.
In 2020, Campbell’s predecessor, now-Governor Maura Healey, accused HealthMarkets of a deceptive scheme cheating more than 15,000 residents out of more than $43.5 million since 2011, violating a 2009 settlement.
In 2022, a different state court judge found HealthMarkets liable, leading to a damages trial in 2023.
