After a year-long dispute with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Springfield Clinic is rolling out its own health plan, the State Journal-Register reported Nov. 29.
The clinic's "Advantage Plan" will be available to employers with 10 or more employees in central Illinois. The plan is in-network with all Springfield Clinic providers and includes providers in-network with insurer HealthLink, an Elevance Health subsidiary.
BCBS Illinois and the clinic went out of network in November 2021. The dispute affected at least 55,000 patients, while the clinic claimed the number of patients affected was twice that.
Springfield Clinic operates 90 clinics in multiple specialties in 20 central Illinois counties.
Zach Kerker, Springfield Clinic's vice president of brand experience and advocacy, told the State Journal-Register the new plan was not a direct reaction to the dispute with BCBS.
"It probably expedited our necessity to do something like this," Mr. Kerker told the newspaper.