Mission Health reached a deal with health insurer Cigna before their contract lapsed.
The Asheville hospital system reach a deal with the insurance company on October 30, just shy of the November 1 deadline.
The multi-year agreement ensures that all Cigna patients will remain in-network. This deal covers Mission Health, an operating division of HCA Healthcare, which includes the surrounding five rural hospitals. Only Mission Hospital was in danger of going out of network.
Negotiations for the deal were announced at the beginning of October, according to the Asheville Citizen Times.
A joint press release from the two organizations explains:
“Both Mission Health and Cigna are pleased to reach agreement on the mutual goal of ensuring that the people of Western North Carolina have access to the affordable, quality healthcare they need.”
Negotiations between hospitals and insurance companies are a scary fact of life for patients.
In 2017, Mission Health was out of network with Blue Cross Blue Shield for just over 3 months after their contract lapsed and a deal could not be reached.
In April, Duke LifePoint Hospitals in Jackson, Haywood and Swain counties were out of network with UnitedHealthcare for about 4 months while the organizations negotiated for a new contract.
The entire Mission Health system was purchased in February by HCA Healthcare for $1.5 billion dollars.
Updated November 1 to clarify that only Mission Hospital had the potential of going out of network. The deal does not impact the other parts of Mission Health.
