CLAIMANTS’ ADVISORY COMMITTEE E-NEWSLETTER
Dow Corning Bankruptcy Settlement
Volume 11, No. 11, September 17, 2014
Contact the CAC at: info@tortcomm.org or
phone: (419) 394-0717
fax: (419) 394-1748
Sybil Niden Goldrich
Ernest Hornsby, Esq
Dianna Pendleton-Dominguez, Esq.
This is the 116th e-newsletter (Vol. 11, No. 11) from the Claimants' Advisory Committee (CAC) in the Dow Corning bankruptcy Settlement Plan. You were sent a copy of the newsletter because our records show that you requested to be on the mailing list. If you wish to unsubscribe, click here or to reply to this newsletter, send an email to: info@tortcomm.org. Please do not hit "Reply" to this email address. To contact the CAC, use the email address: info@tortcomm.org or dpend440@aol.com. You can also contact the CAC directly at 419-394-0717.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
BREAST IMPLANT RECIPIENT SURVEY
Many women who receive this newsletter have found that getting insurance coverage for breast implant problems is difficult. Diana Zuckerman conducted the Congressional investigation of the potential risks of breast implants in 1990, and has been working to help women with implant problems ever since. She is now president of a nonprofit organization that is conducting a study hoping to help as many women as possible. A valuable part of the study is collecting information on this issue. She asks you to take a few minutes from your busy day to please answer these few quick questions.
This survey has only 10 very quick questions. Just click this link to complete the survey online:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/KHCWGM8
STATUS OF PREMIUM PAYMENTS
The SF-DCT continues to issue partial Premium Payment checks to approved Rupture and Disease claimants in Classes 5, 6.1, and 6.2 (Dow Corning Breast Implant Claimants). To date, the SF-DCT has paid out partial Premium Payments of $34,791,684 for approximately 9,700 Rupture claims and 6,500 Disease claims. We realize that receiving your partial Premium Payment is very important to you; however, it is not helpful to call the SF-DCT or our office to ask when you will receive your check. The SF-DCT expects to complete partial Premium Payments in January 2015. This means that in the next 4 months, the SF-DCT will issue approximately 12,300+ Rupture and 23,600 Disease partial Premium Payments totaling approximately $75 million. This is a huge task and is being completed contemporaneously with normal claims processing and reviews. Please be patient.
If you are represented, your check will be sent to your attorney. Please remember to keep your contact information current with the SF-DCT, including any information about probate, attorney representation, and address / phone number / email address. Numerous claimants have an approved claim payment and/or partial Premium Payment that they could receive, but the SF-DCT cannot locate them. If you have any questions about your claim status (NOT a question about when you will receive your Premium Payment), please contact the SF-DCT directly at: info@sfdct.com.
NEW QUESTIONS ABOUT PREMIUM PAYMENTS
In earlier CAC e-newsletters, we published a number of questions claimants and law firms have asked about the partial Premium Payments. You can review these questions in our last newsletter dated August 15, 2014 located on our website www.tortcomm.org (click on E-Newsletters and scroll down to the highlighted date). We will continue to include new questions and answers as the need arises.
Q. I am an attorney and have received partial Premium Payment check for a client that I cannot locate. What can I do with the check?
A. If you cannot locate your client, you can return the check to the SF-DCT and assert a lien on the payment. You should detail what steps you have taken to locate your client and provide the SF-DCT with information about the last known address and/or contact information that you have. The SF-DCT will process the lien request through the Lien Resolution Procedures, and the Lien Judge can then rule upon the lien. If the lien is granted, the SF-DCT can then issue a separate check to the law firm for its share of the partial Premium Payment. The SF-DCT will attempt to locate the claimant as well to issue payment to her.
Q. I do not agree with the amount of the partial Premium Payment and think I should receive a larger amount. Can I return the check and ask for a new evaluation?
A. No. The amount of the partial Premium Payment is not negotiable and cannot be returned. You can apply for an Increased Severity payment if you meet the requirements listed in the Plan (also listed in the Disease Claimant Information Booklet).
STATUS OF OTHER ISSUES
Class 7 – The CAC is nearing completion of an agreement with Dow Corning and proposed Order that would authorize the remaining funds in Class 7 to be distributed to approved Disease claims as required by the Plan. It would also allow previously contested claims to be processed and, if eligible, paid for Expedited Release, Disease Cash-Out or Disease. We hope to file a motion asking for Court approval by the end of 2014. We will ask for expedited treatment to allow payments to begin immediately upon approval.
“ALPHA” FILES – Several years ago, we reported that the SF-DCT had located a number of file folders that contained claim forms and other correspondence from claimants and attorneys, and that the claimants who submitted these claims had not filed a Proof of Claim and/or Notice of Intent form as required. As a result, the SF-DCT did not enter the claimant’s information into its processing system and, in some cases, did not send the claimant or attorney a response to inform them that they had not filed a Proof of Claim and/or Notice of Intent form. Consequently, these claimants missed deadlines for filing a Notice of Intent or late claim request. The claim forms and correspondence were simply filed away without further action. The CAC was alerted to this issue when we followed up on inquiries from claimants and attorneys about the status of a claim they had submitted. It was at this time that the files were found, and we requested a review and audit to determine if there were any other files elsewhere at the SF-DCT.
We believe that all such files at the SF-DCT have been located. In conjunction with the SF-DCT, all file folders have been reviewed. All eligible and timely-filed claims were entered in the system, and the claims were processed and, if eligible, paid. Claimants who submitted claim forms and correspondence after the date in the late claim settlement were informed of the process to submit a late claim request to the court. The court has not granted any additional late claim requests to date. The remaining files consist of various correspondence such as address updates, requests to file a claim, and/or actual claim forms that are dated prior to the date in the late claim settlement agreement. The CAC has completed an extensive review of these files, and we hope to finalize the treatment of these claims soon.
CLAIM ISSUES –
1. BAD ADDRESSES - There are an increasingly large number of claimants who have an approved claim in the SF-DCT but whose check has been returned because of a bad address. Please keep your address current with the SF-DCT. You may be eligible for a payment but have not received it because the SF-DCT cannot locate you. It is your obligation to keep your address current. Please note that the Settlement Fund will close in 2019, and approved claims may be closed forever at that time if the SF-DCT was not able to locate claimants who moved or changed their name.
2. MISSING FOREIGN CLAIMANT ID - Foreign claimants, i.e., women in Class 6.1 or 6.2, are required to submit a government issued ID before payment can be issued. There are approximately 288 approved claims on hold, totaling over $1 million. This means that a claimant submitted a claim, it was reviewed and approved, and the only thing standing in the way of payment is for the claimant to submit a government issued ID. Many of these foreign claimants in this group are from Brazil. The SF-DCT has sent at least two letters to these claimants without a response to correct this simple deficiency. If you have any questions about whether your payment may be on hold for this reason, contact the SF-DCT directly at info@sfdct.com.
3. EXPLANT CLAIMS ON HOLD – The deadline to file a claim for Explant Benefits was June 2, 2014. The SF-DCT received almost 3,000 Explant claim forms in 2014. However, the SF-DCT will not process the Explant claim form (or any claim form for benefits) until a claimant first submits a Proof of Manufacture Form and medical records or other proof that shows that you had a Dow Corning breast implant. If you did not submit the Proof of Manufacturer form or supporting proof, please do so now. Your claim will not be processed until you do this. If you have any questions about whether your form was submitted, you can check the “MY CLAIM” section of the SF-DCT website or you can contact them directly at info@sfdct.com. Please provide your SID number. Please do not call the CAC about this. We do NOT have access to individual claim files or records and cannot give you any information about your claim.
4. MISSING SIGNATURE ON CLAIM FORM – Hundreds of claimants have an approved claim ready for payment to be issued, but they forgot to sign their claim form. The SF-DCT has written to these claimants several times to inform them of this, but many claimants did not respond. If you received a letter from the SF-DCT about this, please respond. If you receive a letter from the SF-DCT about any missing information or deficiency in your claim submission, please respond to fix the problem. Most problems are easily fixed, and claimants could receive payment if they would only take a couple of minutes to respond. If you have any questions about a deficiency in your claim, you can contact the SF-DCT directly at info@sfdct.com. The SF-DCT staff is there to assist you with your claim.
5. CANADIAN ISSUES – We reported in earlier newsletters about a problem that was discovered regarding claims that were filed with the SF-DCT and potentially should have been filed with one of the Canadian settlement offices (Class 6A, 6B, or 6C). Unfortunately, the SF-DCT Claims Administrator during the relevant time frame did not coordinate with the Canadian Claims Administrators to identify and categorize claims into the correct settlement subclass. Now, the settlements for British Columbia and Quebec are closed and no funds remain in these settlements. The Ontario settlement is also closed and is in the process of distributing the remaining settlement funds. In June 2014, the CAC filed a motion with the Ontario court asking for relief to allow those claimants in limbo between the U.S. and Canadian settlements to participate and receive benefits from either the remaining funds in the Ontario settlement or as a member of Class 6.1. That motion is pending and has been objected to by Dow Corning. We are working to identify a solution to this issue as well as for other claimants affected by the now-closed settlements in British Columbia and Quebec. We will continue to provide updates on the status of this issue.
6. RELEASE ISSUES – The CAC is working with Dow Corning to try and find a resolution to a group of approximately 150 claims affected by the CAC’s motion challenging the validity of the “releases” Dow Corning obtained through its Removal Assistance Program in 1993. Dow Corning has objected to these claimants participating in the SF-DCT (even with a set-off for their explant payment) claiming that the “release” barred all other types of claims.
7. PROBATE ISSUES – Many claims that are approved for payment are also being held up because the claimant has passed away, and, in most cases, the SF-DCT needs documentation about who is the court-appointed representative to act on the claim. If you are handling a claim on behalf of a deceased claimant, please contact the SF-DCT to find out what document you need to submit and then consult with a local probate attorney.
STATUS OF CLAIMS PROCESSING AND PAYMENTS
The SF-DCT has released information about the status of claims processing and payments through
August 31, 2014. Through August 31, 2014, the SF-DCT has issued approximately $1.3 billion in approved claims for about 128,000 claims (this amount does NOT include the amount paid for Premium Payments). Listed below are charts summarizing the type and amount of payments.
|
CLASS 5, 6.1 AND 6.2 DOW CORNING BREAST IMPLANT CLAIMS (DOES NOT INCLUDE NOI PAYMENTS) |
|||
|
CLAIM CATEGORY |
NUMBER OF CLAIMS PAID THROUGH AUG 31, 2014 |
PERCENTAGE OF CLAIMS APPROVED CLASS 5 | CLASS 6 |
TOTAL $$ PAID IN CATEGORY THROUGH AUG 31, 2014 |
|
RUPTURE |
21,963 |
71% | 40% |
$ 422,617,524.25 |
|
EXPLANT |
29,967 |
99% | 96% |
$ 145,094,236.91 |
|
EXPLANT ASSISTANCE |
815 |
96% | 91% |
$ 4,028,641.10 |
|
INCREASED EXPLANT (6.2 ONLY) |
302 |
N/A | 93% |
$ 906,000.00 |
|
EXPEDITED RELEASE |
24,992 |
92% | 88% |
$ 45,934,625.39 |
|
DISEASE OPTION 1 |
28,688 |
83% | 69% |
$ 422,859,823.34 |
|
DISEASE OPTION 2 |
1,477 |
31% | 18% |
$ 189,327,998.75 |
|
TOTAL |
108,204 |
N/A |
$ 1,230,768,849.74 |
|
NOI CLAIMS: CLASS 6, 6.1, AND 6.2 |
|||||||
|
|
TOTAL FORMS FILED |
FORMS FILED WITH POM |
ACCEPTABLE POM |
APPROVED |
COMPLETE |
# CLAIMS PAID |
TOTAL AMT PAID |
|
RUPTURE |
1,945 |
1911 |
1,635 |
1,153 |
1,635 |
1,157 |
$21,382,374 |
|
MEDICALLY CONTRAINDICATED |
18 |
16 |
15 |
2 |
10 |
0 |
0 |
|
EXPLANT |
1,531 |
1,509 |
1,288 |
1096 |
1,287 |
1,094 |
$5,322,368 |
|
INCREASED EXPLANT |
292 |
292 |
285 |
99 |
285 |
112 |
336,000 |
|
EAP |
273 |
269 |
211 |
40 |
47 |
36 |
$175,200 |
|
TOTALS |
4,059 |
3,997 |
3,434 |
2,390 |
3,264 |
2,399 |
$27,215,941 |
TOTAL CLAIMS AND PAYMENT AMOUNTS FROM JUNE 1, 2004 – PRESENT, ALL CLASSES
|
8/31/2014 |
|||||||||
|
INCLUDES NOI PAYMENTS (DOES NOT
INCLUDE STALE CHECKS) |
|||||||||
|
|
RUPTURE |
EXPLANT |
INCREASED
EXPLANT |
EXPLANT
ASSISTANCE (EAP) |
EXPEDITED |
DISEASE |
MEDICAL
CONDITIONS (IFBR, TMJ, IMPLANT FAILURE) |
OTHER
PRODUCTS PREMIUM PAYMENT |
TOTAL |
|
CLASS 5 |
$426,748,547.19 |
$145,769,834.71 |
N/A |
$4,176,841.10 |
$42,117,541.54 |
$601,105,053.61 |
N/A |
N/A |
$1,219,917,818.15 |
|
CLASS 6.1 |
$14,049,750.51 |
$4,506,969.90 |
N/A |
$12,000.00 |
$3,121,443.85 |
$8,586,218.48 |
N/A |
N/A |
$30,276,382.74 |
|
CLASS 6.2 |
$3,640,000.00 |
$248,000.00 |
$1,242,000.00 |
$15,000.00 |
$154,700.00 |
$2,496,550.00 |
N/A |
N/A |
$7,796,250.00 |
|
CLASS 6.2 2 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
$118,600.00 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
$118,600.00 |
|
CLASS 6.2 3 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
$516,600.00 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
$516,600.00 |
|
CLASS 7 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
$22,877,366.79 |
$0.00 |
N/A |
N/A |
$22,877,366.79 |
|
CLASS 9 |
$130,000.00 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
$1,762,145.10 |
N/A |
$2,866,500.00 |
$14,215,000.00 |
$18,973,645.10 |
|
CLASS 10.2 / 10.2 |
$6,000.00 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
$155,850.00 |
N/A |
$219,625.00 |
$1,050,875.00 |
$1,432,350.00 |
|
TOTAL |
$444,574,297.70 |
$150,524,804.61 |
$1,242,000.00 |
$4,203,841.10 |
$70,824,247.28 |
$612,187,822.09 |
$3,086,125.00 |
$15,265,875.00 |
$1,301,909,012.78 |
|
|
RUPTURE |
EXPLANT |
INCREASED
EXPLANT |
EXPLANT
ASSISTANCE (EAP) |
EXPEDITED |
DISEASE |
MEDICAL
CONDITIONS (IFBR, TMJ, IMPLANT FAILURE) |
|
TOTAL |
|
CLASS 5 |
21,482 |
29,458 |
N/A |
842 |
21,279 |
28,741 |
N/A |
N/A |
101,802 |
|
CLASS 6.1 |
1,174 |
1,520 |
N/A |
4 |
2,611 |
809 |
N/A |
N/A |
6,118 |
|
CLASS 6.2 |
520 |
136 |
414 |
5 |
221 |
615 |
N/A |
N/A |
1,911 |
|
CLASS 6.2 2 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
100 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
100 |
|
CLASS 6.2 3 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
861 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
861 |
|
CLASS 7 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
13,908 |
0 |
N/A |
N/A |
13,908 |
|
CLASS 9 |
26 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
1,763 |
N/A |
476 |
498 |
2,763 |
|
CLASS 10.2 / 10.2 |
2 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
261 |
N/A |
64 |
64 |
391 |
|
TOTAL |
23,204 |
31,114 |
414 |
851 |
41,004 |
30,165 |
540 |
562 |
127,854 |
DEADLINE REMINDERS
Please mark your calendar with the following claim submission deadlines. Please note that these deadlines mean that your claim forms and materials must be received by the SF-DCT by the posted deadline. Please mail all forms early enough so that they are received by the deadline listed below.
|
Deadline Date |
Type of Deadline |
|
June 3, 2019 |
Disease or Expedited Release Claim submission deadline for all claims in Classes 5, 6.1 and 6.2 (this deadline does NOT apply to Late Claimants) |
If you would like to read prior CAC e-newsletters, they are available on the CAC website by clicking on “Electronic Newsletter.” We urge you to visit the CAC website (www.tortcomm.org) on a regular basis to download or view relevant documents and read updates and new information. To contact the CAC, send an email to: info@tortcomm.org or send a letter to the Post Office Box address for the CAC at:
Claimants' Advisory Committee
P.O. Box 665
St. Marys, Ohio 45885
Phone Number: (419) 394-0717
Fax Number: (419) 394-1748
Email: info@tortcomm.org
NOTICE: This document is copyrighted. You are not authorized to post it on any website without express, prior written permission of the Claimants' Advisory Committee.