In 1999, she sued her insurer over mold damage in her 22-room family home in Dripping Springs, Texas.
On April 1, 1999, after the start of Ron and Reese‘s symptoms, Melinda took a Southwest Airlines flight and became ill, coughing up blood.
Air-quality expert and investigator Bill Holder, who happened to be sitting in the adjacent seat, asked if there was a leak in their home which she confirmed.
She and her husband, Ron Allison, were awarded $32 million in 2001[6] as a result of a lawsuit against Farmers Insurance for their failure to pay claims relating to mold damage.
[7] As a result of her case and the attention she received, Ballard founded Policyholders of America, a consumer advocacy group and homeowner’s insurance information clearinghouse in around 2004.