Medical clinic company Compass Medical is facing a class action lawsuit after the company suddenly closed the doors of its urgent and primary care locations across southeastern Massachusetts.
A former Compass Medical patient claims in the lawsuit that the company failed to give patients advance notice and disrupted their access to medical care and services. The lawsuit accuses the company through its sudden closure of depriving current patients “of ready access to their established medical care teams and thereby disrupting their continuity of care.”
It's estimated that 70,000 former patients could fall under the class action lawsuit. The complaint is seeking to have the company pay damages to all impacted patients.
The complaint highlights that the abrupt closure process was riddled with confusion for patients who sought medical care from the facility. On May 31st, at least one location in southeast Massachusetts had a sign on the front doors that said it was temporarily closed while other locations had signs indicating they were closing early.
Former patients also reported that some locations have signs directing them to other Compass Medical locations. The confusion and lack of communication left patients scrambling to figure out where to turn and how to get the medical care and prescription refills they depend on. On May 31st, the company also dismantled most of its website. That same day, the company would later put up a banner on its website formally alerting patients that it would be closing its facilities permanently. Their initial statement explained, “After a steady stream of challenges, we were ultimately forced to make the devastating decision to close all offices of Compass Medical PC effective immediately.”
Former patients explain that they were not given any notice or any information from Compass Medical directing them on what to do or where to turn to continue their medical care. After dismantling most of its website, the company later put up two web pages that helped give former patients some guidance on other healthcare providers and their contact information. Another web page allows former patients to fill out a form so that they could get ahold of their medical records.
The statewide closure of Compass Medical facilities comes after the company was under increasing financial pressure. Its financial instability stemmed from a 2022 court order that required them to pay over $16 million to another healthcare organization, Steward Healthcare. The judgment came after Compass Medical alleged that Steward Healthcare broke a contract agreement and owed them money. According to the local report, the Patriot Ledger, a Suffolk County jury rejected Compass Medical’s lawsuit and instead ruled that Compass Medical had defrauded Steward Healthcare, issuing a multimillion-dollar judgment in favor of Steward Healthcare.
This current class action lawsuit accuses Compass Medical of similar mismanagement by leaving its patients in a state of confusion and chaos by the company’s abrupt decision to close its stores. The lawsuit explains, “Compass has knowingly placed in the chaotic, stressful, disruptive, and unsafe position of having to scramble to find new medical providers, to fill and/or refill prescriptions, to schedule and/or reschedule important medical tests and appointments, to seek outside referrals, and/or to delay medical care.” The lawsuit continues, “In doing so, Compass violated generally accepted industry standards and guidelines for the orderly winding down and closing of a medical practice.”
