Austin, Texas-based St. David’s HealthCare, a partnership between Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare and two nonprofits, is set to go out of network with Cigna Oct. 1.
St. David’s hospitals, ASCs and affiliated hospital-based physicians in Texas will no longer be available in network, the health system’s website said.
“St. [David’s] HealthCare’s owner HCA is demanding significant hospital price increases that would raise healthcare costs for the employers, employees and families we serve,” a Cigna Healthcare spokesperson told Becker’s Sept. 29. “Given HCA’s position as one of the nation’s largest and most highly consolidated hospital systems, we believe any significant rate increases warrant careful review, particularly when higher costs may not be accompanied by corresponding improvements in quality or outcomes and would ultimately be passed on to employers, workers and their families.”
Continuity-of-care protections may apply to patients who sought care on or prior to Sept. 30, the health system said.
“We want to continue our relationship with Cigna, but it is critical that we agree on a reasonable contract that allows us to continue to provide access to the quality care our patients, physicians, leadership and staff have come to expect,” the St. David’s website said.
At the Becker's 5th Annual Fall Payer Issues Roundtable, taking place November 2–3 in Chicago, payer executives and healthcare leaders will come together to discuss value-based care, regulatory changes, cost management strategies and innovations shaping the future of payer-provider collaboration. Apply for complimentary registration now.
