Company Faces Class-Action COBRA Lawsuit

A former employee has sued Brunel Energy Inc. for failure to notify her of her right to maintain her health insurance coverage after she voluntarily separated from service in 2010 and her attorneys have proposed to bring the lawsuit as a class-action that could involve hundreds of other former employees.

The employee alleges that her former employer—which provides staffing services to the energy industry—never informed her that COBRA allowed her to continue buying health insurance coverage from the employer’s plan. The lack of health insurance coverage became a serious problem after the former employee was diagnosed with cancer several months after leaving employment. And, she suspects that many other former employees were also never notified of their COBRA rights.

The lawsuit asks the court to order the company to reimburse all class members for any medical expenses or insurance premiums that would otherwise have been covered following their separation from service.