Ortiz v. Ciox Health LLC

386 F. Supp. 3d 308
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Illinois
DecidedMay 7, 2019
Docket17cv4039(DLC)
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 386 F. Supp. 3d 308 (Ortiz v. Ciox Health LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Ortiz v. Ciox Health LLC, 386 F. Supp. 3d 308 (S.D. Ill. 2019).

Opinion

DENISE COTE, District Judge:

Hector Ortiz brings this proposed class action against CIOX Health LLC ("CIOX") and the New York and Presbyterian Hospital ("NYPH"). He seeks damages and injunctive relief arising out of defendants' alleged violations of *311New York Public Health Law § 18 (" § 18"), which prohibits health care providers from charging qualified persons more than $0.75 per page for copies of their medical records. This Opinion addresses the defendants' second motion to dismiss this action. Because there is no private right of action under § 18, this action is dismissed.

Background

The facts as alleged in the First Amended Complaint ("FAC") have been described in an Opinion of February 22, 2018, which is incorporated by reference. See Ortiz v. CIOX Health LLC, No. 17cv4039(DLC), 2018 WL 1033237, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. February 22, 2018) ("February 2018 Opinion"). In sum, Vicky Ortiz ("Ortiz"), through her attorney, made a written request to NYPH for her medical records in October 2016. The request indicated that, pursuant to § 18(2)(e), NYPH could not charge Ortiz more than $0.75 per page. NYPH's contractor, a predecessor in interest to CIOX, charged Ortiz $1.50 per page for her medical records. Ortiz paid the bill and subsequently filed this class action. Shortly thereafter, CIOX unilaterally refunded Ortiz's credit card the amount charged above the $0.75 statutory maximum.

The February 2018 Opinion dismissed several counts of the FAC but allowed a single claim, for a violation of § 18(2)(e), to go forward. Id. at *6. On May 14, 2018, Ortiz's counsel informed the Court that Ortiz had died. An Order of October 16 granted plaintiff's application to substitute Hector Ortiz, in his capacity as temporary administrator of the Ortiz estate, as the party plaintiff.

On October 31, CIOX and NYPH filed motions for judgment on the pleadings or to dismiss the remaining cause of action. NYPH and CIOX assert that the plaintiff lacks standing to pursue either damages or injunctive relief, that § 18(2)(e) does not accord a private right of action, that the plaintiff's proposed class is overbroad, and that CIOX's copying costs are not at issue in this litigation.1 Because § 18(2)(e) does not accord a private right of action, only the first two claims are addressed.

Discussion

I. Article III Standing

"Whether a plaintiff possesses standing to sue under Article III is the threshold question in every federal case, determining the power of the court to entertain the suit." Nat. Res. Def. Council v. Nat'l Highway Traffic Safety Admin., 894 F.3d 95, 103 (2d Cir. 2018) (citation omitted). To establish Article III standing, a plaintiff must demonstrate:

(1) injury-in-fact, which means an actual or imminent and concrete and particularized harm to a legally protected interest; (2) causation of the injury, which means that the injury is fairly traceable to the challenged action of the defendant; and (3) redressability, which means that it is likely, not speculative, that a favorable decision by a court will redress the injury.

Id. (citation omitted). A plaintiff "must demonstrate standing for each claim he seeks to press and for each form of relief that is sought." Davis v. FEC, 554 U.S. 724, 734, 128 S.Ct. 2759, 171 L.Ed.2d 737 (2008) (citation omitted). "Although past injuries may provide a basis for standing to seek money damages, they do not confer standing to seek injunctive relief unless the plaintiff can demonstrate that she is likely to be harmed again in the future in a *312similar way." Nicosia v. Amazon.com, Inc., 834 F.3d 220, 239 (2d Cir. 2016). "That a suit may be a class action adds nothing to the question of standing, for even named plaintiffs who represent a class must allege and show that they personally have been injured, not that injury has been suffered by other, unidentified members of the class to which they belong." Spokeo, Inc. v. Robins, --- U.S. ----, 136 S. Ct. 1540, 1547 n.6, 194 L.Ed.2d 635 (2016) (citation omitted).

CIOX and NYPH moved earlier in this case to dismiss Ortiz's claims for lack of standing. They argued that Ortiz lacked standing to pursue her claims for damages because the FAC failed to allege that she, rather than her attorney, was injured. They also argued that the FAC failed to allege a likelihood of future injury sufficient to confer standing for injunctive relief. They further argued that, even if Ortiz had standing at one point, her claims became moot when CIOX unilaterally refunded to her credit card the amount of the alleged overcharge. Each of these arguments was rejected in the February 2018 Opinion. See Ortiz, 2018 WL 1033237, at *2-3.

In their current motion, the defendants reframe their mootness argument as a standing argument. It remains a mootness argument, see Friends of the Earth, Inc. v. Laidlaw Envtl. Servs. (TOC), Inc., 528 U.S. 167, 189, 120 S.Ct. 693, 145 L.Ed.2d 610 (2000), and it was properly rejected as such in the February 2018 Opinion. Ortiz, 2018 WL 1033237, at *3 ; Geismann v. ZocDoc, Inc., 909 F.3d 534, 543 (2d Cir. 2018).

The defendants additionally argue that, because Ortiz recently died, Hector Ortiz does not have standing to pursue claims for injunctive relief on her behalf. The defendants are incorrect.

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Bluebook (online)
386 F. Supp. 3d 308, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/ortiz-v-ciox-health-llc-ilsd-2019.