Can a wife join her husband in suing their medical insurer?

Finally, in Hatchwell v. Blue Shield of California (1988) 198 Cal.App.3d 1027, a wife sought to join her husband in suing their medical insurer on the claim that the insurer had wrongfully denied benefits to her husband. The court held that she had no standing to sue the insurer. The benefits which were the subject of the claim belonged to her husband, not her. This result flowed even though wife was a co-insured under the policy (i.e., entitled to dependent benefits); however, on this particular claim, she was not the claimant and that was enough to deprive her of standing.