On February 14, 2014, the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that the Class Action Fairness Act’s (CAFA) $5,000,000 amount-in-controversy requirement can be satisfied where the plaintiff seeks only declaratory relief. S. Fla. Wellness, Inc. v. Allstate Ins. Co., No. 14-10001, --- F.3d ----, 2014 WL 576111 (11th Cir. Feb. 14, 2014). A dispute arose when South Florida Wellness, a Florida-based healthcare provider, sought payment from Allstate for its treatment of an Allstate insured under a policy that provided for personal injury protection (PIP) coverage. South Florida Wellness sought payment of 80% of the amount billed pursuant to § 627.736(1)(a), Fla. Stat., but Allstate paid a lower amount based on its interpretation of the policy and pursuant to the reimbursement methodology set forth in § 627.736(5)(a), Fla. Stat. South Florida Wellness contended that Allstate was required to clearly and unambiguously indicate in its policies that it would limit payments to the statutory fee schedule in § 627.736(5)(a).
South Florida Wellness filed a putative class action in Florida state court on behalf of “Any and all health care providers and insureds who submitted claims for no-fault benefits under PIP policies which were in effect from March, 2008, where Allstate utilized the reimbursement methodology pursuant to Florida Statute 627.736(5)(a) 2(a-f) (2008) (the fee schedule) to limit reimbursement to the provider or the insured where the policy did not expressly and unambiguously indicate Defendant’s election to limit reimbursement in accordance with Florida Statute 627.736(5)(a) 2 as its sole methodology for payment of No Fault claims.” South Florida Wellness did not seek monetary damages, but instead sought only a declaration that the language Allstate used in the class members’ policies did not clearly and unambiguously indicate that payments would...
