BOSTON—The Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled Feb. 19 that state health officials erred when they denied a claim from a teenage girl who had HIV-related surgery, saying payment can’t be denied simply because she did not have permission from her insurer before the procedure.

Ashley Shaw, 18, had appealed a lower court decision upholding MassHealth’s refusal to pay for surgery to remove a painful pad of fat from her neck caused by HIV medications.

The appeals court overruled the lower court, saying Ashley’s claim couldn’t be denied by the Massachusetts Division of Medical Assistance, which manages the MassHealth program, just because the procedure had been performed without final approval.

The court ordered MassHealth, the state’s Medicaid provider, to review the claim based on the medical merits of the procedure.

Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders, a gay advocacy group, filed the appeal on behalf of Ashley and her mother.

“It is the first time that a court in Massachusetts has ruled that MassHealth is misapplying their prior authorization regulation in this way,” said Janson Wu, a staff attorney with the group.