Doctors sue insurer over being excluded

SEATTLE – The Washington State Medical Association sued Regence BlueShield on Thursday, accusing the health insurer of using flawed methods and outdated information to exclude more than 500 doctors from a “select” network.

In a lawsuit filed in King County Superior Court, the medical association accused Regence of defaming doctors in letters to thousands of patients, telling them their physicians lacked “quality and efficiency in their practices” and would not be covered under the new network.

The lawsuit seeks to block Regence from implementing the select network, saying it was based on “statistically flawed data and methodology that mischaracterized physicians’ practices.”

The lawsuit also claimed, among other things, that Regence engaged in unfair and deceptive business practices and defamed doctors with false statements that adversely affected their practices.

Regence defended its methods of collecting data and said it’s working with the medical association to address its concerns.