UnitedHealthcare and Hartford Healthcare are fast approaching their March 31 contract negotiation deadline. Without a deal, one of the state’s healthcare giants will become out of network for hundreds of thousands of insured Connecticut residents.
The issue centers on the rates UnitedHealthcare is willing to pay to keep Hartford Healthcare “in-network.” Hartford Healthcare said it needs more money for its services, and United has said it’s asking for too much.
Kathleen Holt, the state’s Healthcare Advocate appointed by Gov. Ned Lamont in September, said the situation has left customers stuck in the middle and in panic mode.
“They don't understand. They've done everything right. They've got insurance,” Holt said. “They're even more concerned in this particular situation because Hartford Healthcare is so large that having to try to find care somewhere else is more difficult.”
Both United and Hartford Healthcare have said they hope to reach a deal before the March 31 deadline. According to Holt, how quickly your health insurance would be affected if they don’t depends on your plan.
Thanks to the state’s “cooling off requirements, " consumers on UHC/Oxford commercial plans will be considered in-network until May 31. But for Medicare Advantage, including Group Retiree and Dual Special Needs Plans (DSNP) members, the change will be instant. They'll lose in-network coverage on April 1.
Holt said the companies are “using patients to push their own agendas and their own positions.”
“Hartford Healthcare will say, ‘if we don't negotiate the contract that we feel that we need, it could jeopardize the safety and quality of care that we're able to deliver.’ And UnitedHealthcare says, ‘if we don't get the terms that we think we need, then affordability of health care will be damaged.’”
“To a certain extent, everybody is right, and everybody is wrong,” Holt continued.
The Office of the Healthcare Advocate has published an FAQ page to answer questions about the negotiations.
“Every time we go through these types of negotiations, it erodes the confidence that people have. It erodes the credibility in the health care system, and people are very mistrustful going forward,” Holt said.
In a statement, a UHC spokesperson said HHC's proposals would increase health care costs by approximately $185 million for consumers and employers.
“HHC continues to seek price hikes for our commercial plans that are nearly double the health care cost benchmark established by the state," a UHC spokesperson told WSHU. "HHC is also proposing to be reimbursed significantly more than any health system in our Medicare Advantage network in Connecticut."
If HHC does leave the network, some people may be able to keep their doctors in-network under certain circumstances, like pregnancy or active cancer treatment. They encourage anyone looking for a doctor outside of HHC to call the number on the back of their health id card.
“We are very aware of the impact negotiations have on the communities and patients we serve,” a Hartford Healthcare statement to WSHU read. “We are working diligently to resolve remaining issues to ensure a mutually agreeable contract and believe we can reach a resolution soon.”
This story has been updated with a quote from UnitedHealthcare.
