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Point Pleasant man wins five-year, $40 fight with insurance company
POINT PLEASANT -- A $40 medical bill might seem insignificant but Sam Juniper says his five-year battle over paying it was a matter of principle.
Juniper says his health benefits weren't supposed to change after he retired in 2000 from M&G Polymers, even if the company switched insurance providers.
But he received a $40 bill in 2002 after the company's new health provider, Aetna Insurance, refused to cover the cost of some blood work.
He challenged the decision in Mason Circuit Court and won every decision all the way to the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va. The appeals court ruled in his favor on Oct. 10. Juniper was represented during the last two appeals by Huntington attorney Mark Underwood of the law firm of Underwood and Proctor, which said it agreed to represent Juniper without payment.
Underwood and Juniper are scheduled to appear on the Fox News Channel around 8:30 a.m. Thursday via satellite to talk about the battle.
Juniper says he is still waiting for his $40 refund check, which he plans to frame and hang on his wall.
