N.J. Blue Cross may cut Philadelphia hospitals from coverage

0 Comments | Philadelphia Inquirer, The, September, 2008 | by Stacey Burling Inquirer Staff Writer

In the midst of its campaign to convert into a for-profit company, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey is threatening to cut two Pennsylvania hospital powerhouses out of its treatment networks. Horizon has notified subscribers that it is terminating contracts with Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania Health System when they expire in, respectively, November and December.

Roughly 28,000 subscribers use those facilities. Horizon said subscribers would be charged out-of-network fees for using Children's and its facilities in New Jersey after March 11. Penn's three hospitals - Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Hospital and Penn Presbyterian Medical Center - would be out-of-network after April 11. The showdown is...