Northeast Georgia Health System patients insured by UnitedHealthcare face uncertainty as they head into open enrollment season. United is in the early stages of negotiating a new contract with the region’s largest healthcare system.
NGHS released a statement Friday saying the two hope to reach an agreement that “protects in-network access for patients and fair compensation for the care NGHS provides.”
The current contract expires on April 30, 2023.
Under current terms, United patients are covered at all of NGHS facilities – including all Northeast Georgia Medical Center hospitals, Northeast Georgia Physicians Group practices, Urgent Care locations, Georgia Heart Institute locations, Laurelwood, long-term care facilities, and other outpatient facilities.
“It’s important to stress nothing is changing now, and people with UnitedHealthcare plan coverage should continue to see their NGHS providers and seek care like usual,” says NGHS Chief Operating Officer of Population Health and Vice President of Managed Care Steve McNeilly. “We have more than six months to reach a new agreement.”
If no contract is reached, United patients could find themselves out of network as they were briefly in 2012 when negotiations broke down.
“We simply want to be transparent with our community – especially because it’s open enrollment season for many – so people have all the information available to make the best decisions for themselves and their families. We will keep our patients informed as the negotiations progress,” says McNeilly.
Contract negotiations between insurance companies and providers are common. NGHS started discussions with United earlier this year to allow enough time to reach an agreement and avoid unnecessary disruption, the statement reads.
Similar to the marketing push NGHS made when negotiations with Anthem broke down in 2019, the health system is encouraging patients to contact United and let them know they want to have “continued, in-network access to NGHS.”
