Those with Blue Cross and Blue Shield health insurance have something to be thankful for—not having to change where they get medical care in 2018.
OSF HealthCare announced Wednesday that it’s reached an agreement with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL), settling a dispute that became public last month. OSF announced Oct. 10 it was terminating its agreements with BCBSIL due to a dispute over the changing size of the insurer’s PPO network. That dispute had already lead to Blue Cross and Blue Shield dropping three OSF hospitals from its network, and OSF was planning to pull its other hospitals out as well, as of Jan. 1, 2018.
The agreement announced Wednesday means none of that will happen. All OSF hospitals and services will continue to be in-network now and throughout 2018, the Peoria-based healthcare system said.
“We are pleased to have finalized a continuation of OSF HealthCare’s relationship with BCBSIL that ensures patients and families have in-network access to the treatments and services they need,” Randy Billings, senior vice president of population health, said in a statement. “We realize this situation caused concern for our patients and families, and appreciate the support and patience of local businesses and community leaders.”
The agreement also includes BCBSIL Commercial, PPO, EPO, and Blue Choice products that BCBSIL terminated previously. For a complete listing, visit OSF’s website.
“The fact that Blue Cross terminated OSF probably isn’t the tradition of how things go. But if you look around the country, there are disputes and contract discussions going on at any given time,” Billings said.
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