Jackson Citizen Patriot
The financial impasse between Jackson's only hospital and its biggest private health-insurance company is settled.
Allegiance Health and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan signed a contract this week setting hospital payment rates for the next three years.
Allegiance Health and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan signed a contract this week setting hospital payment rates for the next three years.
The agreement ends nine months of difficult negotiations and guarantees Blue Cross insurance will continue to be accepted at Allegiance.
Terms of the agreement are considered confidential and were not released.
Georgia Fojtasek, Allegiance president and CEO, said the hospital did not get everything it wanted, but did gain some ground.
``It's certainly better than where we started,'' Fojtasek said.
Kim Sorget, Blue Cross vice president of provider contracting and network administration, called the deal a fair agreement for both sides.
``Difficult economic times can lead to tough negotiations,'' Sorget said. ``However, it was important to both
parties to finalize a fair agreement that moves in the
direction of meeting the needs of the community and allows our organizations to continue their long-standing relationship.''
Blue Cross covers 21 percent of all patients at Allegiance. It covers well over half, 68 percent, of patients with private insurance.
The negotiating impasse centered around the size of price increases Allegiance will receive in the new contract.
Allegiance officials accused Blue Cross of seeking prices so low they were ``unsustainable.''
Blue Cross countered that its proposals to Allegiance were fair and in line with other hospitals in the region.
The last contract expired July 1. Rates in the old contract stayed in place as negotiations continued.
The standoff went public in October, when Allegiance officials rallied Jackson business leaders to side with the hospital.
Fojtasek said 27 businesses wrote letters to Blue Cross supporting Allegiance.
``The amount of community support coalescing around Allegiance was very impressive,'' Fojtasek said.
Terms of the agreement are considered confidential and were not released.
Georgia Fojtasek, Allegiance president and CEO, said the hospital did not get everything it wanted, but did gain some ground.
``It's certainly better than where we started,'' Fojtasek said.
Kim Sorget, Blue Cross vice president of provider contracting and network administration, called the deal a fair agreement for both sides.
``Difficult economic times can lead to tough negotiations,'' Sorget said. ``However, it was important to both
parties to finalize a fair agreement that moves in the
direction of meeting the needs of the community and allows our organizations to continue their long-standing relationship.''
Blue Cross covers 21 percent of all patients at Allegiance. It covers well over half, 68 percent, of patients with private insurance.
The negotiating impasse centered around the size of price increases Allegiance will receive in the new contract.
Allegiance officials accused Blue Cross of seeking prices so low they were ``unsustainable.''
Blue Cross countered that its proposals to Allegiance were fair and in line with other hospitals in the region.
The last contract expired July 1. Rates in the old contract stayed in place as negotiations continued.
The standoff went public in October, when Allegiance officials rallied Jackson business leaders to side with the hospital.
Fojtasek said 27 businesses wrote letters to Blue Cross supporting Allegiance.
``The amount of community support coalescing around Allegiance was very impressive,'' Fojtasek said.
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