San Francisco-based Dignity Health and Cigna still lack an agreement more than a month after their contract expired Dec. 31, according to Kaiser Health News.
The dispute has left about 16,600 patients in limbo. The conflict affects 31 Dignity hospitals in California and three in Nevada. None of Dignity's hospitals in Arizona are affected. Dignity is part of Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health.
In a statement to Kaiser Health News before the split, Cigna said "the problem is price," adding, "Dignity thinks that Cigna customers should pay substantially more than what is normal in the region, and we think that's just wrong."
Dignity disagreed with this characterization. A spokesperson told the publication: "At a time when many nonprofit community hospitals are struggling, Cigna is making billions of dollars in profits each year. Yet Cigna is demanding that it pay local hospitals even less."
Read the full report here.
More articles on payer:
10 largest health insurers
22 payer exec moves in January
Humana, PE firm bet $600M on Medicare clinics: 5 things to know