Lazaar v. The Anthem Companies, Inc.

Filing 129

ORDER granting 125 Letter Motion to Seal. Application GRANTED. The aforementioned documents shall be temporarily sealed. The Court will determine whether the documents shall remain sealed when deciding the motions on class certification. Parties are directed to brief on sealing in accordance with the Court's Individual Rules. The Clerk of Court is directed to SEAL the aforementioned exhibits of ECF No. 124. Access is restricted to attorneys for the parties and court personnel. SO ORDERED. (Signed by Judge Jessica G. L. Clarke on 1/27/2025) (tg)

Caitlin L. Opperman
Direct: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
[e-mail]

4700 IDS Center
80 South Eighth Street
Minneapolis, MN 55402
[phone]

January 24, 2025
VIA ECF
The Honorable Jessica G. L. Clarke
United States District Court
Southern District of New York
500 Pearl Street, Room 1040
New York, NY 10007
Re:

Lazaar, et al. v. The Anthem Companies, Inc., et al.
No. 1:22-cv-3075 (JGLC)
Letter-Motion to Seal Exhibits in Support of Plaintiffs’ Motion for Rule 23 Class
Certification

Dear Judge Clarke:
In accordance with Standing Order 19-MC-583, Section 6 of the S.D.N.Y. Electronic Case
Filing Rules and Instructions and Your Honor’s Individual Rule 5(e), Plaintiffs Leslie Lazaar and
Donna Tropeano-Tirino, by and through their undersigned counsel, file this Letter-Motion to Seal
Exhibits in Support of Plaintiffs’ Motion for Rule 23 Class Certification.
In support of the Motion, Plaintiffs submit the following:
1.
On January 22 and 23, 2025, counsel for Plaintiffs conferred with counsel for
Defendants regarding exhibits Plaintiffs intended to file in support of their Motion for Rule 23
Class Certification. Plaintiffs provided specific bates numbers to Defendants of company
documents produced by Defendants during discovery that Plaintiffs intended to use in support of
their motion for Defendants’ consideration as to whether they should be filed under seal;
seal;

2.

Defendants identified a subset of those documents that they requested be filed under

3.
Based on Defendants’ request for sealing, Plaintiffs therefore move to seal the
following exhibits submitted in support of Plaintiffs’ Motion for Rule 23 Class Certification:
•

Exhibit 2:

Excerpt from AUMSI Staff Listing 1st Qtr. 2022 (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_MIDKIFF_00303409 (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 4:

New York 2022 Utilization Management Program Evaluation (Bates
labeled ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00017257) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 5:

Empire BlueCross Blue Shield Health Plus New York State Utilization
Management (UM) Program Evaluation 2022 (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00577975) (filed under seal);
1

•

Exhibit 9:

AUMSI UM Services, Inc. 2024 Utilization Management Program
Description (Bates labeled ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00017202) (filed under
seal);

•

Exhibit 10:

AUMSI Utilization Review Process policy (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_MIDKIFF_00302192) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 11:

Approval – Initial Inpatient Review Quick Reference Guide (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_LEARING_008766) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 12:

Approval – Concurrent Review Quick Reference Guide (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_LEARING_008775) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 13:

Medicaid Inpatient Review Desktop Process (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00011977) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 14:

Clinical Hierarchy for Utilization Management Decisions Operational
Guideline (Bates labeled ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00010563) (filed under
seal);

•

Exhibit 15:

Pend to Medical Director – Outpatient Quick Reference Guide (Bates
labeled ANTHEM_LEARING_008600) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 16:

Associates Performing Utilization Reviews – Core Process (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_CANADAY_00022248) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 18:

Utilization Management Training (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_BAKER_00116058) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 21:

Utilization Management Standards and Elements 2020 (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_CANADAY_00021369) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 22:

Clinical Criteria for Utilization Management Decisions – Core Process
(Bates labeled ANTHEM_CANADAY_00021493) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 24:

Documentation – Clinical Information and Pending for Medical Director
Review Quick Reference Guide (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00006662) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 25:

Documentation – Outpatient RN/LPN Completed DoT Tool Quick
Reference Guide (Bates labeled ANTHEM_LEARING_008704) (filed
under seal);

•

Exhibit 26:

CCR Daily Expectations Work Flow – Medicaid Quick Reference Guide
(Bates labeled ANTHEM_LEARING_008427) (filed under seal);
2

•

Exhibit 27:

Turnaround Time Monitoring, oversight, and Corrective Action Plan
Process for Commercial Business (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00010798) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 28:

UM Time Study Findings (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_BAKER_R_00014843) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 29:

UM Clinical Audit Tool Reference Guide (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00006573) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 30:

GBD ACMP Audit Tool (Bates labeled ANTHEM_LEARING_119627)
(filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 31:

CSBD UM Audit Tool - ACMP (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_LAZAAR_01333206) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 32:

UM 2C Consistency in Applying Criteria (Bates labeled
ANTHEM_BAKER_00000300) (filed under seal);

•

Exhibit 34:

IRRA Tip Sheet (Bates labeled ANTHEM_LAZAAR_00007121) (filed
under seal);

4.

Plaintiffs have notified Defendants that they must file on ECF, within three business
days of the filing of this letter-motion, a letter explaining the need to seal these
documents.

Dated: January 24, 2025

Respectfully submitted,

Application GRANTED. The aforementioned
documents shall be temporarily sealed. The Court NICHOLS KASTER, PLLP
will determine whether the documents shall
By: /s/ Rachhana T. Srey
remain sealed when deciding the motions on class
Michele R. Fisher, NY Bar No. 4505822
certification. Parties are directed to brief on
Rachhana T. Srey, MN Bar No. 340133*
sealing in accordance with the Court's Individual
Caitlin L. Opperman, MN Bar No. 0399978*
Rules. The Clerk of Court is directed to SEAL the 4700 IDS Center
aforementioned exhibits of ECF No. 124. Access
80 S. 8th Street
is restricted to attorneys for the parties and court
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55402
personnel.
Telephone: [phone]
Facsimile: [phone]
SO ORDERED.
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
[e-mail]
JESSICA G. L. CLARKE
United States District Judge
Dated: January 27, 2025
New York, New York

*Admitted pro hac vice
3

Attorneys for Plaintiffs, the FLSA Collective, and
the Putative New York Rule 23 Class

4