Ex-NBA star suing insurance company for $40M for allegedly denying coverage for COVID-19-related heart disease

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Former NBA player Michael Kidd-Gilchrist has been diagnosed with COVID-19-related myocarditis and has not played in the NBA since 2020.

The 2012 second overall pick had acute chest pain in December 2020 and was advised not to play basketball.

Now, the former Kentucky star is suing an insurance company over a denial of coverage claim.

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Michael Kidd-Gilchrist of the Charlotte Hornets makes a move in a game against the Indiana Pacers at Bankers Life Fieldhouse Dec. 15, 2019, in Indianapolis. (Justin Casterline/Getty Images)

According to his attorney, Jason Morrin, Kidd-Gilchrist made a claim to Lloyd’s of London "for coverage under the policy due to permanent total disablement arising from a sickness." Morrin says the policy provided coverage if Kidd-Gilchrist was unable to continue "his occupation as a professional basketball player."

However, the suit says that the company "refused to fully insure the damage caused by the loss for which plaintiff sought coverage."

Kidd-Gilchrist was just 26 when he last appeared in the NBA, and he says he felt symptoms of his heart disease as recently as June.

Morrin said the player paid "an annual premium on the policy averaging $66,125," and the policy was in effect from Sept. 14, 2019 to Sept. 14, 2021.

Kidd-Gilchrist is suing the company for $40 million.

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist of the Charlotte Hornets plays the Denver Nuggets at the Pepsi Center Jan. 5, 2019, in Denver, Colo. (Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

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