Northside Hospital Forsyth recently issued the following announcement.
In a major victory for hundreds of thousands of Georgians, Northside Hospital has been granted injunctive relief by the court that temporarily stops a threatened termination of health care coverage by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield.
The decision by the Superior Court of Fulton County enables Anthem members who seek care at Northside’s hospitals, clinics, and physician practices to remain fully covered and in-network while the parties work towards a long-term resolution.
In its court filings, Northside cited a Georgia law that went into effect July 1, 2021. House Bill 454 was approved by both houses of the Georgia General Assembly and signed by Gov. Brian Kemp. Specifically, the law states in part:
“In the event of a public health emergency…..an insurer shall, for a period commencing on the effective date of the public health emergency and ending 150 days after the expiration of such public health emergency…..be prohibited from terminating a provider from the insurer’s network…..”
Why did Northside take this action?
Our agreements with Anthem were not up for renewal and were not set to expire. Still, earlier this year, Anthem began a process that would separate hundreds of thousands of Georgians from their doctors and health care resources by unilaterally and without cause terminating the existing agreements. And with the COVID-19 Omicron variant now surging through U.S. and Georgia, Anthem’s decision to remove Northside from its networks defied both logic and sensitivity.
What does this mean for Anthem members?
It means that Anthem members can continue to receive health care services at any Northside location or physician practice on an in-network basis after January 1. The injunction issued by the courts is a temporary measure to ensure Anthem patients can still access care within the Northside Healthcare System. In the meantime, Northside will continue its discussions with Anthem, with the intention of reaching a long-term agreement that provides the best benefits to patients and their families.
We encourage Northside patients to continue to share their concerns with Anthem -- to ensure that their rights to choose their physicians and hospitals are protected.
Original source can be found here.
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