We are honored to represent the unstoppable Ady Barkan in his fight against Health Net, who has denied him vital medication and a ventilator.
Barkan, of Santa Barbara, California, is a father suffering from ALS who made headlines last year when he shared a flight with Sen. Jeff Flake coming back from Washing, D.C.. Flake was a critical swing vote on an upcoming tax bill which Barkan had flown to D.C. to protest. Videos of Barkan stating his case against the tax bill circulated online along with Flake’s response.
Now Barkan, a Yale law school graduate, has retained Callahan & Blaine and filed three class action lawsuits yesterday in Los Angeles Superior Court.
The lawsuit alleges a breach of contract by Health Net claiming that its process for denying benefits is not fair for members. Barkan points to the difficulty that he had navigating the system despite his being a Yale Law grad.
An ABC News report on Ady Barkan was shown last night which covers Ady’s battle as well as his appearance at Health Net headquarters yesterday to announce the lawsuits against Health Net. Callahan & Blaine senior attorneys, Rich Collins and Damon Eisenbrey, attended and conducted the press conference, some of which can be seen in the ABC report.
“We are asking a court find that these practices are unfair, that they are unjust and that the court order them to discontinue these practices,” stated Collins.
Barkan has had strong social media support in his battle, especially on Twitter (you can follow here) where his #BeAHero campaign promoting better access to healthcare continues to gain traction.
The video below articulates Barkan’s struggle and his Be a Hero campaign.
