By: Health Insurance
Submitted: 2009-10-29 08:56:15 | Word Count: 589
Negotiations have resumed between Bristol Hospital and Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield.
“We have agreed to renew the efforts from both sides,” said hospital President Kurt Barwis, who spoke Thursday with David Fusco, president of Connecticut Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield.
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“I’m hopeful,” said Barwis. “We’re motivated to get this thing done and I think they’re motivated as well.”
Contract talks between the hospital and Anthem over rates for health care services broke down earlier this month, opening the possibility that Bristol Hospital would be out of network for thousands of local residents with Anthem as their health insurance.Coming to an agreement, said Barwis, would be “the best thing for everybody,” from Anthem to the hospital to doctors and patients.
Barwis said he and Fusco had a good dialogue, and didn’t talk about rates. Instead, he said, they spoke about how to “get this thing going in the right direction.”
In a prepared release from Anthem, the company said the goal of the conversation was to restart negotiations.
“Anthem has had a long-standing relationship with the hospital and we remain hopeful that Bristol Hospital and Anthem will be able to reach agreement so that this termination is avoided,” the Anthem statement said.
Barwis said that a negotiator for the hospital and for Anthem had already met earlier in the week and would continue to try to reach an agreement. He said they need to have time to understand each other’s positions and resolve the dispute.
Barwis said Fusco didn’t make him an offer and said he didn’t expect one.
“We both acknowledged that we’re pretty far apart,” said Barwis.
The hospital maintains it only wants Anthem to pay a rate comparable to other insurance companies, which would require a substantial increase because current rates are low. Anthem views the increase as too much.
Earlier in the day, Bristol Mayor Art Ward also took part in a meeting with Anthem.
Ward said he and the city comptroller, assistant comptroller and personnel director all met with two vice presidents from Anthem for a little more than an hour.
“I thought we had a very informative discussion,” said Ward. They talked about the complexities of the health care system and how insurance companies arrive at the rates that they pay providers.
The mayor characterized the meeting as “very amiable.”
Ward said he’s hopeful that the contract dispute will be resolved. It was clear that the health insurance for municipal and school district employees that the city buys from Anthem could be at stake if Bristol Hospital isn’t part of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield network, he said.
Anthem’s statement said the company met with the mayor and other city officials “as a valued customer” and to discuss the impact of possible rate changes in the hospital’s contract and how Anthem would transition city employees to alternative care if a contract isn’t reached with the hospital.
The company stressed that it did not consider Ward a mediator in its dealings with Bristol Hospital.
