When you are involved in a Mass tort litigation, either in leadership or handling cases, it is never too early to think about lien resolution. If started too late, the post-settlement process will hold up distribution to your clients even after all the hard work you put in to settle the cases. Having a lien resolution administrator on board from the beginning will enable you to get ahead of delays and frustration.
Before allocations can be approved for each plaintiff, your lien resolution administrator can attempt to establish global resolution programs with lien holders like Rawlings, Optum/Equian, Medicare, and even some states’ Medicaid systems. Without proper planning, HIPAA authorizations can be a problem once the lien resolution process starts. An incentive to avoid individual authorizations for each plaintiff in a mass tort is the single order that is a Qualified Protective Order (QPO). The QPO is where the Judge authorizes a specific party to receive information for all plaintiffs with just one signature: the judge’s own signature.
Another unforeseen delay is the notion that lien holders may ask for final allocation amounts for each plaintiff before it finalizes the lien. This process should be explained to clients in advance as it may cause further delay in when distributions can be made to plaintiffs.
The decision to start early is being adopted by some Judges when the MDLs are formed by delegating a lien resolution committee. The judiciary has realized that this kind of planning is critical to more efficient practices in the post settlement process.
It is never too early to start working on the healthcare liens for your mass tort cases. Preparation can reduce those concerns and make the post-settlement process a smoother one. Contact the experts at MASSIVE for all your lien resolution needs.
