Bronson Healthcare Group Inc v. Michigan Assigned Claims Plan
Bronson Healthcare Group Inc v. Michigan Assigned Claims Plan
Opinion
*303 Defendants Michigan Assigned Claims Plan (MACP) and Michigan Automobile Insurance Placement Facility (MAIPF) appeal by leave granted the circuit court order dismissing their claim of appeal for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction. 1 Because plaintiff is not statutorily entitled to maintain an action for personal protection insurance (PIP) benefits, we vacate the decision of the circuit court, we reverse the district court's grant of summary disposition to plaintiff, and we remand to the district court for entry of summary disposition in favor of defendants.
Plaintiff provided medical treatment to an individual injured in an automobile accident in October *304 2014. According to plaintiff, the injured party was not covered by a no-fault insurance policy, and plaintiff sought to have defendants assign the claim to an insurer. Defendants refused to assign the claim. Thereafter, plaintiff filed a complaint in the district court against defendants and John Doe Insurance Company, claiming that defendants had an obligation to assign the claim to an insurer and that John Doe Insurance Company was liable for approximately $5,000 in no-fault benefits. With regard to defendants, the district court granted summary disposition to plaintiff under MCR 2.116(I), concluding that defendants were statutorily obligated to assign plaintiff's claim for benefits. Defendants appealed in the circuit court, but the circuit court dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction, reasoning that the order granting summary disposition to plaintiff was not a final order over which the circuit court had jurisdiction under MCR 7.103(A)(1). Defendants filed an application for leave to appeal in this Court, which we granted on May 8, 2017. 2
On appeal, defendants ask that we remand for entry of summary disposition in their favor under
Covenant Med. Ctr., Inc. v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co.
,
*305
Relevant to the parties' arguments, on May 25, 2017, the Michigan Supreme
*684
Court decided
Covenant
, wherein the Court held that healthcare providers do not have an independent statutory cause of action against insurers to recover PIP benefits.
Id.
at 195-196, 217-218,
In this case,
Covenant
is clearly dispositive with regard to plaintiff's claims against defendants. Quite simply, as a healthcare provider, plaintiff has no independent statutory claim against defendants.
Covenant
,
On appeal, plaintiff does not offer a substantive challenge to defendants' entitlement to summary disposition under
Covenant
. Instead, plaintiff maintains that the
Covenant
question is not properly before us because it was not raised and decided in the lower courts. In analogous circumstances, we have previously rejected preservation arguments relating to
Covenant
and exercised our discretion to review
Covenant
arguments that were not raised before, addressed, and
*306
decided by the trial court.
W A Foote Mem. Hosp.
,
In sum, applying Covenant , we conclude as a matter of law that defendants are entitled to summary disposition. Consequently, we vacate the decision of the circuit court, we reverse the district court's grant of summary disposition to plaintiff, and we remand to the district court for entry of summary disposition in favor of defendants. On remand, plaintiff shall be given the opportunity to file a motion to amend its complaint.
Vacated in part, reversed in part, and remanded for proceedings consistent with this opinion. We do not retain jurisdiction.
O'CONNELL, P.J., and SWARTZLE, J., concurred with HOEKSTRA, J.
Because only MACP and MAIPF are parties to this appeal, our use of the term "defendants" refers to them alone and does not include defendant John Doe Insurance Company.
Bronson Healthcare Group, Inc. v. Mich. Assigned Claims Plan , unpublished order of the Court of Appeals, entered May 8, 2017 (Docket No. 336088).
We note that defendants' application for leave to appeal and their supporting brief concerned the circuit court's jurisdictional decision and its conclusion that the district court order granting summary disposition to plaintiff was not a final order. Defendants' application for leave to appeal in this Court did not raise defendants' arguments relating to Covenant . Indeed, Covenant was decided after we granted defendants' application for leave to appeal. Typically, an appeal "is limited to the issues raised in the application and supporting brief." MCR 7.205(E)(4). However, this Court has the discretionary power to "permit amendment or additions to the grounds for appeal,"MCR 7.216(A)(3), and to "enter any judgment or order or grant further or different relief as the case may require," MCR 7.216(A)(7). In this case, we find it appropriate to exercise this discretion to consider defendants' dispositive Covenant arguments. Given our conclusion that defendants are entitled to relief under Covenant , we find it unnecessary to address the circuit court's jurisdictional decision because, even if the district court order in question was a final order, remand to the circuit court for further proceedings when defendants are so clearly entitled to summary disposition would be a waste of judicial resources.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.