GAINESVILLE, Fla. (WCJB) – The University of Florida Health healthcare company allowed its contract with United Healthcare to expire, leaving thousands of patients without an in-network provider on Sunday.
READ: Negotiations between UF Health and United Healthcare continue
Officials with UF Health said United Healthcare excluded UF Health hospitals and physician groups in Gainesville, Jacksonville and St. John’s from its network.
Chief executive officer of UF Health Physicians Marvin Dewar said UF Health officials will continue to work with United Healthcare towards a solution.
“Our commitment to placing patients at the heart of our efforts is unwavering, and we have put processes in place to minimize any disruption in care to the extent we can, but unfortunately United Healthcare has given us no other choice,” said Dewar. “We continued to try to reach an agreement right up to the deadline but United insisted upon linking other products to the negotiations and abruptly imposing new conditions and changing language to items that had already been agreed upon.”
READ: UF Health patients risk losing health insurance coverage as negotiation deadline approaches
According to a statement released from UF Health on Sept. 1, United offered UF Health commercial rates that were below general inflation and rising annual costs and has refused to honor commitments to previously agreed-upon pay rates.
A spokesperson from United Healthcare said that they had sent an updated proposal with employer-sponsored commercial plans on Aug. 30 to include additional compromises and rate increases that UF Health never countered.
The last proposal received before that was on Aug. 29, when UF Health had allegedly proposed a 30% price hike over two years and a 20% rate increase over one year, according to United Health officials.
In a press release, UF Health officials stated that Medicare Advantage patients would not be affected by the change. Most of UF Health Central Florida, excluding UF Health St. John’s, is not a part of current negotiations and will remain in-network with United Healthcare.
However, physicians with UF Health St. John’s-Flagler Hospital are now out-of-network providers as of Sept. 1 for patients covered by Medicare Advantage plans.
UF Health officials had been negotiating reimbursement rates with the national healthcare provider and were given a deadline of Aug. 31 to respond to a contract related to Medicaid plans, according to United Healthcare officials.
In a statement, a spokesperson for United Health shared the following with TV20:
According to the spokesperson, United Healthcare officials had offered UF Health a contract that would have allowed UF Health St. John’s to remain in-network but UF “refused to finalize the contract.”
Patients can contact UF Health with questions at 1-855-834-7337 or visit their website for a list of health plans accepted by UF Health in Gainesville, Jacksonville and St. Johns.
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