Five Migrant Workers Sue Trinity Medical Inc. for Failing to Refund Fees Covered by Medicaid

Five female migrant workers have filed a class-action lawsuit against Trinity Medical Inc., alleging that Trinity-operated medical clinics refused to refund them the fees they paid for medical services, even though the clinics were also reimbursed by Medicaid, the Palm Beach Post reports. The women paid approximately $800 each to the clinics for prenatal care services. The lawsuit states that the money was paid to the clinics "with the assurance that [it] would be refunded once the women gave birth" and enrolled in the state's emergency Medicaid program. Under federal law, undocumented immigrants cannot receive food stamps or enroll in Medicaid, but they are eligible for emergency Medicaid, which reimburses doctors and hospitals for the cost of delivering infants. Charging patients and Medicaid for the same services is a violation of state and federal rules, the Post reports. All the women in the suit were accepted into the emergency Medicaid program, but the suit charges that the clinics "refused" to refund their money. They are suing under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, which gives special legal protections to people who "do not have enough education to read and understand contractual terms." The plaintiffs are seeking reimbursement, punitive damages of three times the money they paid to the clinics and attorneys fees (Chapman, Palm Beach Post, 7/3).