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Twenty years ago, Janet Hubert starred as Vivian Banks on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air." Today, she says she is unable to work because of ongoing medical issues and is fighting to get coverage for treatment.
Hubert has been dealing with health problems since 2004, RadarOnline.com reported. She allegedly received treatment for vertigo and intense facial pain under the American Federation of Television and Radio Acts' (AFTRA) insurance plan.
She then “began developing a strange ‘chatter’ in her jaw; was unable to comb her hair; could not touch her face; had severe reactions to sound; would awaken with her mouth clenched; could not move her body in a manner she was used to; and found light painful.” She received "trigger point injections" for this, but the AFTRA allegedly claimed the treatments were "excessive in terms of frequency and duration” and wouldn't cover them all.
“There is a lot going on, health-wise,” Hubert told Radar. “I have had a lot of issues over the years, but I’d like my benefits back. That’s all.”
Hubert filed a suit against the AFTRA Health & Retirement Funds in December 2012 in New Jersey District Court. A representative for AFTRA could not be immediately reached for comment. Hubert could not be reached by press time.
Hubert played the original Aunt Viv on the hit comedy from 1990 to 1993. She was fired and replaced with actress Daphne Reid.
Last May, Hubert spoke with omg! Yahoo about her departure from the show and put the blame on Will Smith. She previously sued Smith and NBC, claiming that the actor fostered a hostile work environment after she became pregnant in the early 90s, the New York Daily News reported.
Smith has spoken out against Hubert in his own defense.
"She has basically gone from a quarter of a million dollars a year to nothing," he told an Atlanta radio station around the time of Hubert's departure from the show. "She's mad now but she's been mad all along. She said once, 'I've been in the business for 10 years and this snotty-nosed punk comes along and gets a show.' No matter what, to her I'm just the Antichrist."
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CORRECTION: A previous version of this post incorrectly stated that Hubert appeared on the show 10 years ago. She was on the show 20 years ago.