BREAKING NEWS: St. Charles reaches contract deals with Cigna and Aetna; both insurers will now stay in-network
Barney Lerten
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — St. Charles Health System announced Tuesday it has reached contract agreements with two insurance providers – Aetna and Cigna – that it said address concerns about denials, inefficiencies and administrative burden and will allow patients using those insurance plans to remain in-network for elective services at St. Charles facilities.
St. Charles and Cigna Healthcare had announced that Cigna would no longer be considered in-network starting Oct. 1, potentially impacting thousands of patients across Central Oregon, after talks reached a stalemate.
Here’s the rest of Tuesday’s announcement by St. Charles:
“For the past several years, St. Charles has asked insurance companies to work with us to address concerns about coverage denials for medical treatments, increasing administrative burdens for our care teams, inefficiencies and delays in patient care,” said Matt Swafford, Chief Financial Officer for St. Charles.
“Though not perfect, both contracts with Aetna and with Cigna include elements that better address these issues. We will remain in-network for both insurance companies,” Swafford added.
The contract with Aetna was resolved recently, and Aetna estimates it covers about 7,500 people in Central Oregon. The contract with Cigna was set to expire on Sept. 30, which would have affected about 5,000 patients.
“We understand that some individuals were concerned about potentially losing or having to switch coverage, and that’s a worry we take seriously,” Swafford said. “We are moving ahead with these newly negotiated agreements because we believe it is in the best interest of patients and for preserving health care access in Central Oregon.”
About St. Charles Health SystemSt. Charles Health System, Inc., headquartered in Bend, Ore., owns and operates hospital campuses in Bend, Madras, Prineville and Redmond along with primary and specialty care clinics throughout the Central Oregon region. St. Charles is a private, nonprofit Oregon corporation and is the largest employer in Central Oregon with more than 5,200 caregivers. We proudly partner with our local medical community to provide a wide variety of health services.