Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates has rejected an offer from Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi to reinstate its contracts with four of its 10
Health Management decided the terms of the offer were unacceptable, according to the report. Sherry Pitts, CEO of Woman's Hospital in Flowood, criticized the proposal at a news conference Wednesday for its restrictions, conditions and pre-certification requirements. Woman's Hospital is one of the facilities the health insurer had offered to reinstate, along with
BCBS has not discussed the terms and conditions of its offer, and officials declined to comment on the proposal on the grounds they hadn't received a formal response from Health Management, according to the report. Earlier this week, the hospital operator questioned in an email to The Clarion-Ledger why Blue Cross wasn't looking to reinstate all 10 hospitals.
The 10 hospitals all sued the insurer in June, claiming the payer has been underpaying them by millions for certain inpatient procedures. In July, the insurer sent a termination notice to Health Management informing the company that it intended to ax its contracts with the
During a legislative hearing last month, Health Management claimed BCBS monopolizes the state's healthcare market and is pushing the hospitals to accept lower payments. BCBS testified that Health Management hospitals overcharge for services, and the possible closures are because of the company's in-progress acquisition by Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems rather than the BCBS contract.
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