GardaWorld Ordered to Defend Health Plan Smoker, Vaccine Penalty

GardaWorld Cash Service Inc. must defend a pared-back lawsuit by workers who say they’re wrongly charged higher health insurance fees for using nicotine products or failing to submit updated vaccine records.

GardaWorld doesn’t appear to inform workers about the possibility of having these penalties waived based on a doctor’s recommendation, Judge Kenneth D. Bell said Thursday. Federal regulations under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act require such information to be shared with workers, and the plaintiffs plausibly alleged that GardaWorld flouted these requirements, Bell said for the US District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.

Dozens of recent ...