VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Local insurance disputes cause uncertainty in Central New York healthcare
Audrey Glynn: Excellus Blue Cross Blue Shield is one of the largest insurance providers in Central New York. But the company is currently in disputes with St. Joseph’s Hospital and they are warning patients under the insurance that coverage will potentially be abandoned due to unfair payment claims. Health insurance expert and Syracuse University professor Jun Li says if this dispute isn’t solved, healthcare in Central New York will decline.
Jun Li: “Which could be bad for consumers, especially if St. Joe’s has an edge on certain services. You really want to be going to the best possible hospital for your healthcare needs.”
Glynn: Syracuse University, one of the biggest employers in Central New York, provides health benefits through Excellus, and SU professor and Landmark Theater General Manager Marc Albert is concerned for the future under Excellus.
Marc Albert: “They’ll tell you to go to urgent care. So if that’s taken away as a form of where they can get their medical care, or if they know they’re going to wait all day, all night at one of the hospitals, then people are just not going to get medical care.”
Glynn: With WellNow Urgent Care already unavailable to those who are covered by Excellus and the potential cut of St. Joe’s and other medical companies, people are going to start coming here, to Crouse Hospital and Upstate, where they already have problems of their own.
Li: “In a lot of these hospital systems, there’s a vast labor shortage, and so that has contributed to a lot of these issues like patients not being able to get into a bed, so they’re waiting in the hallways because simply there aren’t enough workers.”
Glynn: Dr. Li says she believes a deal will be made with Excellus and St. Joe’s due to the fact that the three hospitals in Syracuse serve tens of thousands of people in Central New York and the service is vital.
Li: “St. Joe’s can come back and really say you can’t afford to not pay our prices because patients are going to demand our services.”
Glynn: If no deal is made, St. Joe’s and Excellus will part ways Jan. 1, 2025, leaving Excellus patients at St. Joe’s with paying out of pocket or searching for new healthcare.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) — St. Joseph’s Hospital in Syracuse, U.S. News and World Report’s best hospital in the region, is disputing with Excellus BlueCross BlueShield insurance. With the current deal between the two ending in January, St. Joe’s is warning patients they may no longer accept Excellus coverage due to claims that the insurance company is giving St. Joe’s unfair payment.
Excellus is a major insurance provider in the region, where there are few hospitals. Without the coverage at St. Joe’s, many Central New Yorkers will be forced to pay out of pocket or find healthcare elsewhere, such as Crouse Hospital or Upstate University Hospital. Jun Li, a health insurance expert and Syracuse University professor, said the hospital system in Central New York is already overburdened and this dispute may lead to overall healthcare decline.
“In a lot of these hospital systems, there’s a vast labor shortage and that has contributed to a lot of these issues, like patients not being able to get into a bed,” said Li. “So they’re waiting in the hallways because simply, there aren’t enough workers.”
Syracuse University employs thousands of Central New Yorkers and provides health benefits through Excellus. These employees are already without coverage from WellNow Urgent Care after Excellus and the company cut ties earlier this year. Marc Albert, Landmark Theater General Manager, and SU Professor, said he just wants his family to get medical care when needed.
“They’ll tell you to go to urgent care,” said Albert. “So if that’s taken away as a form of where they can get their medical care, or if they know they’re going to wait all day, all night at one of the hospitals, then people are just not going to get medical care.”
Excellus is saying that St. Joe’s is asking for too much in rate increases while they are trying to give as many people access to health insurance as they can. On the other hand, St. Joe’s is saying they need more from the insurance company to perform their services. The hospital president, Steven Hanks, began sending letters to patients, warning them of the possible change.
With increased prices all around the industry and labor shortages, Li said the issues at hand are all intertwined. She has faith in a deal between the two companies because St. Joe’s services are an integral part of healthcare in Syracuse and the entire region.
“St. Joe’s can come back and really say you can’t afford to not pay our prices because patients are going to demand our services,” said Li.