Content Dam Diq En Articles Apex360 2017 03 California Dental Association Settles With Dental Dental Ending Contentious Legal Battle Leftcolumn Article Thumbnailimage File

Delta Dental settles with California Dental Association, ending contentious legal battle

March 14, 2017
In a favorable result for dentists, the California Dental Association (CDA) reached an "unprecedented" settlement with Delta Dental in a case alleging breach of contract by the insurance giant. The settlement ends three years of complicated and expensive litigation.

The California Dental Association (CDA) has reached an "unprecedented" settlement with Delta Dental in a case alleging breach of contract by the insurance giant. The settlement ends three years of contentious, complicated, and expensive litigation.

The suit centered on Delta Dental's actions to amend the Participating Dentist Agreement of its Premier plan, which dentists claimed was a breach of contract. Additional irregularities were allegedly uncovered during the course of the litigation. (1)

In a letter to association members posted March 7, CDA President Clelan Ehrler, DDS, MS, wrote, "I am very pleased to inform you that CDA has achieved a favorable and, in many respects, unprecedented settlement in our legal action against Delta Dental regarding its attempt to cut Premier Plan reimbursement fees."

In an article posted March 10, the American Dental Association (ADA) called the settlement "favorable" and provided details of the case for its members.

REFERENCES

California Dental Association achieves favorable settlement with Delta Dental. American Dental Association website. http://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2017-archive/march/california-dental-association-achieves-favorable-settlement-with-delta-dental?nav=news. Published March 10, 2017. Accessed April 7, 2017.

Editor's note: This article was updated on April 7. It had incorrectly stated that the lawsuit brought by dentists was in response to fee reductions.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTARY

Take that, Delta Dental! | By Chris Salierno, DDS

Editor's note: This article first appeared in the Apex360 e-newsletter. Apex360 is a DentistryIQ partner publication for dental practitioners and members of the dental industry. Its goal is to provide timely dental information and present it in meaningful context, empowering those in the dental space to make better business decisions. Subscribe to the Apex360 e-newsletter here.

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About the Author

Apex360 Editors

Apex360, a member of the DentistryIQ Network, features news and information on the dental industry.

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Updated April 22, 2016