Ascension saw disruptions to its ACA health plans following the May cyberattack on the 140-hospital system, NPR reported June 14.
The St. Louis-based organization took its IT network offline after the hack, leading to ambulance diversions, delayed appointments and longer wait times across the country. Health plan members had to temporarily pay premiums by check, and some reported issues with claims processing.
A spokesperson for the Texas Department of Insurance told NPR that Ascension's ability to "accept and process claims" had been disrupted, though no members have filed any formal complaints with the state.
"While systems have come back online, they have a backlog of claims to enter and process," the state told the outlet.
The health system's ACA plans, Ascension Personalized Care, are available in Indiana, Kansas, Tennessee and Texas.
Ascension said June 14 it has restored EHR access across the health system.
“Throughout the cyber attack, our hospitals, facilities and call center remained open and provided care and support," an Ascension spokesperson told Becker's. "We continue to work diligently to ensure that any claims processing issues caused by the attack do not impact our patients' ability to receive care. Additionally, we have waived many prior authorization requirements for services to ensure our patients receive the care they need without delay. As workflow in our hospitals and clinics is returning to normal procedures, we have also recently begun processing claims for providers."