Payer

Pittsburgh-based Highmark has individually partnered with Conemaugh Health System in Johnstown, Pa., and Lehigh Valley Health Network in Allentown, Pa., to collaboratively develop health plans designed to lower patients' out-of-pocket costs, reports Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Baptist Health Plan officials said the insurer was forced to exit Kentucky's insurance exchange because it attracted too many health customers, reports Insider Louisville.

Shares of Humana fell 5 percent Wednesday after CMS downgraded the percent of Humana policyholders enrolled in so-called high quality Medicare Advantage plans.

Payer Aetna and Hackensack, N.J.-based Regional Cancer Care Associates will collaborate for an oncology medical home to enhance cancer patient care.

Monroe, La.-based Affinity Health Group and Bloomfield, Conn.-based payer Cigna are in network effective immediately, and will be through next year and possibly longer, KNOE reports.

Two potential payer transactions — Aetna's acquisition of Humana and Anthem's acquisition of Cigna — may be linked in headlines and antitrust lawsuits, but are forging different paths toward attempted consolidation, The Wall Street Journal reports.

The following insurers made headlines this week. They are listed below, beginning with the most recent.

Herb Fritch, president and founder of Cigna-HealthSpring — the Medicare Advantage arm of payer Cigna — will retire effective Nov. 11.

CMS released 2017 Star Ratings for Medicare Advantage and Part D plans, with nearly half of all Medicare Advantage with Part D plans earning an overall rating of four stars or higher.

NorthBay Healthcare and Blue Shield of California are poised to terminate their in-network agreement Dec. 1, reports The North Bay Business Journal.