Aetna Class Action Says Insurer Revealed HIV Status of Thousands

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Insurance company Aetna was hit with a class action lawsuit alleging the company revealed the HIV status of thousands when they used a partly transparent envelope to mail medication instructions.

The lead plaintiff, who uses a pseudonym, alleges in his class action lawsuit that the envelope used to send HIV medication instructions from Aetna had a window that revealed the name and address of the policyholder.

The plaintiff alleges that the following statements were also visible through the window on the envelope, “[t]he purpose of this letter is to advise you of the options…Aetna health plan when filling prescriptions for HIV Medic…”

“Despite the fact that the first AIDS case was identified more than 40 years ago, people living with HIV and AIDS still face extreme stigma. In fact, stigma is widely recognized as a driver of the AIDS epidemic,” alleges the Aetna class action.

The lawsuit notes studies that find those with HIV face discrimination and stigmatization and that many Americans still have misconceptions about how HIV is transmitted. Fear of discovery leads those with HIV to avoid seeking treatment as well, alleges the class action, making Aetna’s breach of privacy extremely troubling.

According to the class action lawsuit, Aetna’s letter revealed the HIV status of the plaintiff to his family and caused embarrassment.

“Aetna’s unprecedented HIV privacy breach has caused turmoil in people’s lives,” said an attorney for the plaintiff in a statement. “Some have lost housing, and others have been shunned by loved ones because of the enormous stigma that HIV still carries. This case seeks justice for these individuals.”

Prior class actions alleged that Aetna violated policyholder privacy by requiring them to obtain HIV medication by mail rather than in-person. Aetna agreed to allow policyholders to obtain medication in-person and sent the letter than lead to the present class action.

The Aetna class action alleges that by using the transparent envelopes Aetna “carelessly, recklessly, negligently and impermissibly” violated the privacy of 12,000 policyholders. The plaintiffs point out that there were many ways Aetna could have protected the privacy of its policyholders in their complaint. For example, a blank cover sheet could have been used or different envelopes.

The plaintiff seeks to represent a nationwide Class of Aetna policyholders who received the letter along with a Pennsylvania subclass. The plaintiff estimates that nearly 12,000 people were sent the letter from Aetna.

In a statement, a representative for Aetna said “[w]e sincerely apologize to those affected by a mailing issue that inadvertently exposed the personal health information of some Aetna members. This type of mistake is unacceptable, and we are undertaking a full review of our processes to ensure something like this never happens again.”

The lead plaintiff is represented by Shanon J. Carson, Sarah R. Schalman-­Bergen, E. Michelle Drake and John Albanese of Berger & Montague PC, Ronda B. Goldfein and Adrian M. Lowe of AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania and Sally Friedman, Monica Welby and Karla Lopez of the Legal Action Center.

The Aetna HIV Disclosure Class Action Lawsuit is Andrew Beckett v. Aetna Inc., et al., in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

UPDATE: On Jan. 16, 2018, Aetna agreed to pay $17 million to settle a class action lawsuit accusing them of improperly disclosing confidential information about patients’ HIV status.

UPDATE 2: June 2018, the Aetna HIV status disclosure class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.