St. Luke’s may amend within thirty days. If St. Luke’s amends to assert an ERISA claim, the personal jurisdiction issue is far simpler. “[U]nder ERISA’s nationwide service of process provision,” 29 U.S.C. § 1132(e)(2), “[a] court may exercise personal jurisdiction over the defendant if it determines that the defendant has sufficient ties to the United States.” . . . Because BCBSLA has sufficient contacts with the United States, this court would have personal jurisdiction if St. Luke’s were to amend to assert claims under ERISA.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Hosp. v. La. Health Serv. & Indem. Co., 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 388 (S.D. Tex. Jan. 6, 2009) (citations omitted)
This recent opinion from the Southern District of Texas provides an excellent insight into the strategic decisions involved in provider reimbursement litigation. In the final analysis, the provider’s attempt to assert state law remedies in state court against the Blue Cross defendant failed for want of jurisdiction. All was not lost, however, since the ruling left open the avenue for an amended complaint stating a claim under ERISA on principles of derivative standing (via assignment of benefits).