Tulsa, Okla.-based Hillcrest HealthCare System announced it is out of network with all Aetna insurance plans after its contractual agreement expired on Nov. 1.
In a Nov. 1 press release, Hillcrest said the system has not yet reached an agreement with Aetna, but it will continue to work toward an agreement.
Hillcrest told News On 6, a CBS affiliate in Tulsa, Okla., that Aetna leadership refused to engage with the system’s leadership over the past six months. Hillcrest also cited concerns about below-market reimbursement rates and timely payments.
“Hillcrest HealthCare System chose to terminate the Aetna agreement. We have engaged with Hillcrest HealthCare System leaders in good faith and offered them fair rate terms, but we remain far apart on terms because Hillcrest HealthCare System is asking for price increases that would raise the costs paid by our members and health plan sponsors significantly,” an Aetna spokesperson said in a statement to Becker’s. “We remain willing to negotiate to reach an agreement that will keep Hillcrest HealthCare System in our networks, but we cannot agree to terms that would burden our members and plan sponsors with significant cost increases.”
According to the Nov. 1 press release, emergency services will remain covered at in-network rates, and Aetna Better Health, the insurer’s Medicaid plan, is not affected by the termination and will remain fully contracted.
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