Anyone who received inpatient treatment at Evanston Hospital, Glenbrook Hospital or Highland Park Hospital between Feb. 10, 2000, and Dec. 31, 2015, may soon have money coming their way.
Under the terms of a pending legal settlement, anyone who received inpatient treatment at any of the three hospitals within the specified time period, no matter where they live, is eligible unless they used Medicaid or Medicare, didn’t have insurance or didn’t pay their bill.
Patients have until April 4 to submit claims, either online or by mail.
In a statement to the RoundTable, Endeavor Health said it welcomed the settlement. “The resolution of this matter allows us to continue focusing on providing exceptional care and a safe, seamless and personal experience for those we are privileged to serve,” it stated.
Lawsuit scope
The origin of the settlement goes back more than 15 years. On Nov. 17, 2008, a group of patients treated at one of the three hospitals plus unionized employees filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Chicago alleging that what is now Endeavor Health (formerly NorthShore University HealthSystem) its near-monopoly on local hospitals to hike prices. NorthShore continued to expand, becoming more of a monopoly as legal proceedings dragged on. Finally, on Dec. 13, 2023, the two sides reached a settlement agreement.
While social media posts have described the settlement as primarily benefiting women who delivered babies at NorthShore, it actually covers all patients who got any kind of in-patient care. Anyone eligible would need to file a claim through the settlement website, and the exact amount will depend on how many claims are submitted.
Endeavor has set aside $55 million to pay off the claims, but at least $5.475 million of that will be used to cover legal expenses. And it isn’t a done deal: The court will hold a hearing May 6 when it is expected to finalize the settlement. Any eligible party can object to any aspect of the settlement at the hearing.
Started in 1891
According to Wikipedia, “NorthShore was founded as Evanston Hospital in 1891during an outbreak of typhoid fever. In the early 1900s Evanston Hospital expanded and became a teaching hospital.” It opened Glenbrook Hospital in 1977 and acquired Highland Park Hospital in 2000 and Skokie Hospital in 2009, along with several other hospitals outside the North Shore area.
The parameters of the lawsuit changed over the course of the legal process. Ironically, the original plaintiffs – patients Amit Berkowitz and Steven J. Messner, Dr. Henry W. Lahmeyer and Painters District Council No. 30 Health & Welfare Fund, an employee health plan for union painters working for NorthShore – were not included in the settlement.
Marvin A. Miller, lead attorney for the plaintiffs, declined to comment, saying the settlement hasn’t received final approval and he doesn’t comment on pending litigation.
Miller selected a third-party claims administrator to send out notices and process claims. He and Endeavor spokesperson Keith Hartenberger said questions about any specifics of who is eligible and how many notices have been sent out need to be directed to them.
Any eligible person has the right to opt out of the settlement, which would enable them to sue Endeavor Health on their own.
The RoundTable spoke to one parent whose entire household received settlement notices. She requested anonymity because she is an employee of Endeavor Health. She said she got the notice because she delivered at one of the system hospitals. Her daughter also received a notice, as did her husband, who also received in-patient care at the hospital.
She said that while she plans to submit a claim, she doesn’t anticipate a “windfall.”
“I don’t expect it to get a lot of money, and it’s over 15 years, so you can just imagine the number of admissions,” she said.
To read the full text of the settlement, click here. To file a claim online, click here.
Settlement could lead to payout for some ex-Evanston Hospital patients is from Evanston RoundTable, Evanston's most trusted source for unbiased, in-depth journalism.