How much is Express Scripts, Inc. permitted to charge an Alabama customer for copies of her prescription records? The complaint alleges that the company charges $90, which it attempts to portray as a fee for a service, but the complaint argues that the prescription records are medical records, subject to Alabama’s cap on prices for such records. It also argues that the records are maintained on computer and therefore cost Express Scripts very little to generate.
The class for this action is all Alabama citizens living in Alabama and all Alabama entities located in Alabama who paid the “data processing fee” to obtain health information and/or records from Express Scripts on or after August 16, 2015.
The plaintiff in this case, Hannah Reid, was originally represented by the law firm Swiney & Bellenger, LLC. This firm requested her prescription records from Express Scripts. Express Scripts said the request had to be sent with the “required processing fee … To cover our costs of processing your request, Express Scripts charges a non-refundable processing fee of $90.00. NOTE: THIS IS NOT A COPYING FEE; IT IS A DATA PROCESSING FEE.”
The firm paid the fee, and Reid was obligated to reimburse it.
However, the complaint alleges that in providing these records, Express Scripts was bound by Alabama law. The complaint claims the law applies to “[a]ny medical provider or company or other legal entity that maintains medical records.”
The complaint quotes the relevant part of the Alabama Code: “The reasonable costs of reproducing copies of written or typed documents or reports shall not be more than one dollar ($1) for each page of the first 25 pages, not more than 50 cents ($0.50) for each page in excess of 25 pages, and a search fee of five dollars ($5).” If the records are mailed to the requesting person, then “the actual costs of mailing the medical records” can be added.
The complaint claims that Express Scripts fee “is, in truth, completely arbitrary and is in no way rationally or reasonably related to the actual cost incurred by Express Scripts in processing a request for customer pharmacy records.”
The complaint says, “Upon information and belief, Express Scripts stores and maintains all customer pharmacy records and prescription histories electronically on a centralized computer system located at its Missouri headquarters. The time, effort, and expense incurred by Express Scripts to retrieve, transmit, and provide copies of pharmacy records is de minimis, and can be done with the touch of a button.”
The complaint contends, “Express Scripts’s flat fee assessment is not for goods or services furnished or performed, but is instead an improper mean to collect inflated, excessive, and unreasonable amounts which far exceed any actual costs incurred by Express Scripts in processing a pharmacy records request.”
Article Type: LawsuitTopic: News
Most Recent Case Event
Express Scripts Excessive Charge for Prescription Records Alabama Complaint
October 14, 2021
How much is Express Scripts, Inc. permitted to charge an Alabama customer for copies of her prescription records? The complaint alleges that the company charges $90, which it attempts to portray as a fee for a service, but the complaint argues that the prescription records are medical records, subject to Alabama’s cap on prices for such records. It also argues that the records are maintained on computer and therefore cost Express Scripts very little to generate.
Express Scripts Excessive Charge for Prescription Records Alabama ComplaintCase Event History
Express Scripts Excessive Charge for Prescription Records Alabama Complaint
October 14, 2021
How much is Express Scripts, Inc. permitted to charge an Alabama customer for copies of her prescription records? The complaint alleges that the company charges $90, which it attempts to portray as a fee for a service, but the complaint argues that the prescription records are medical records, subject to Alabama’s cap on prices for such records. It also argues that the records are maintained on computer and therefore cost Express Scripts very little to generate.
Express Scripts Excessive Charge for Prescription Records Alabama Complaint