UPDATE: East Texas State Rep. Jay Dean of Longview said that BlueCross and BlueShield of Texas and CHRISTUS Health have extended their current contract until Aug. 1, 2025.
“CHRISTUS and BCBSTX have extended their current contract to August 1 while they continue negotiating,” Dean said. “I’ve been working with both parties to come to a reasonable conclusion to protect patients of East Texas!”
The Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ ActiveCare BlueCross BlueShield website confirmed that the contract has been extended until Aug. 1.
“We have a long and positive relationship with CHRISTUS Health, but you are our priority,” the website said. “We want to reach an agreement that will continue to give you access to CHRISTUS Health doctors, facilities and hospitals at fair prices.”
TYLER, Texas (KETK)– For decades BlueCross and BlueShield of Texas (BCBSTX) has been an accepted insurance provider for CHRISTUS Health, but that could all change if they cannot reach an agreement by July 1.
According to CHRISTUS Health, they have been negotiating with BCBSTX for months to secure a “reasonable insurance reimbursement rate for their health services” but the responses have been unfavorable so far. However, CHRISTUS Health said they will continue to communicate with them in hopes of finalizing an agreement before the pending termination.
“CHRISTUS Health is working hard to keep health care costs affordable for all while continuing to provide high-quality and compassionate services to our patients and their families,” the healthcare system said. “We encourage patients to call the BCBSTX customer service number located on their insurance card to let them know how important it is for CHRISTUS Health hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers and physician clinics to remain in network so that they have access to the entire provider network and benefits as a BCBSTX member.”
Even if CHRISTUS Health goes out of network with BCBSTX on July 1, they said their emergency departments will always be available to ensure that patients get the “affordable, quality care they need and deserve.”
“In a recent communication issued by BCBSTX, the company indicated that CHRISTUS Health may not submit patient insurance claims to BCBSTX after June 30,” CHRISTUS Health said. “Should this happen, please know that while we won’t be able to file in-network claims to BCBSTX on your behalf, we will file out-of-network insurance claims if your plan has this option.”
According to CHRISTUS Health, if they go out of network BCBSTX might say that there are other providers willing to accept BCBSTX members, but the reality is that access to many of these providers will be limited due to capacity issues these providers are already experiencing.
“In other words, these providers will not be able to handle the additional volume of patients,” CHRISTUS Health said. “In turn, you and your dependents will have long wait times or may have to seek care outside of your immediate geographic region.”
CHRISTUS Health patient Amy Norris received a letter on June 5 warning that her Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas insurance will not cover her care at CHRISTUS starting on July 1.
“If the best they can do is provide us 25 days notice, that’s not good enough,” Norris said.
Norris called her doctor to move up her upcoming appointment because her medical care is now up in the air.
She got her monthly supply of medicine and get ahead of the possible cutoff date.
“If the wait is two months or three months, I would have run out of prescriptions that I take on a daily basis,” Norris said.
Norris feels that the burden is now put on thousands of patients.
“What matters to me are the thousands of patients. We’re just stuck and we’re not sure what to do next or, you know, who’s going to be caring for us as of July 1st,” Norris said.
On Friday morning, BlueCross BlueShield of Texas (BCBSTX) released a statement to KETK news about the negotiation with CHRISTUS Health.
“CHRISTUS Health notified us they are terminating their physician and hospital agreements on June 30, unless those agreements are modified. If new agreements are not reached by that date, CHRISTUS Health facilities and affiliated doctors and health care professionals will no longer be in our provider networks.
We value the care that CHRISTUS Health provides our members and are working closely with them to sign new contracts before that date. Our goal is to protect our members and customers’ access to quality care at affordable rates. If we cannot reach an agreement, our members will continue to have access to a network of doctors, health care professionals, hospitals and facilities throughout Texas.”
BlueCross BlueShield of Texas
Texans can find more information about this pending termination on CHRISTUS Health’s FAQ section or on BCBSTX.
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