UVM Health Network Renews Contract with UnitedHealthcare
Update: March 29, 2022
The University of Vermont Health Network has reached a renewal agreement with United for another year, through March 31, 2023.
As part of this agreement, United has agreed to allow continued patient access to laboratory and pharmacy services and they have also committed to address other policies that restrict how and when patients receive health care covered by their insurance plan.
If you are a United commercial plan subscriber and have received any services at the UVM Health Network during this time, there is no impact to you and you do not need to take any action.
We deeply regret this period of uncertainty that has caused undue stress and disruption for our patients who are covered under Commercial UnitedHealthcare plans.
March 3, 2022
Please note that Alice Hyde Medical Center (including The Alice Center), Central Vermont Medical Center (including Woodridge Nursing & Rehabilitation), Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital (including Lake Champlain Physician Services and Skilled Nursing Facility), Elizabethtown Community Hospital, Porter Medical Center (including Helen Porter Rehabilitation and Nursing), and The University of Vermont Medical Center will no longer be participating in the UnitedHealthcare (“United”) Commercial Insurance provider network. This means most services provided at The University of Vermont Health Network’s (“UVMHN”) hospitals, outpatient facilities, clinics and provider practices will no longer be covered as in-network benefits under United Commercial plans.
This change does not impact any existing participation status between UVMHN and United for Medicare Advantage, Managed Medicaid and Veterans Administration Community Care Network (“VA CCN”) coverage, which we will continue to accept. Central Vermont Medical Center and Champlain Valley Physicians Hospital will also continue to accept United Behavioral Health coverage.
For a number of years, our ability to provide timely and appropriate care to our patients covered by United Commercial plans has been affected by significant administrative and operational issues. Despite our best efforts to resolve these issues, patients continue to experience unnecessary delays in approvals for common tests, including imaging, treatments and medications among many other challenges.
If you have health insurance through your employer, you should talk to them about your available plan options. For patients that have enrolled in health insurance through non-employer plans, you may wish to elect to change insurers during the next open enrollment period in order to ensure that your care at the UVM Health Network is considered in-network.
The below references answer some frequently asked questions. However, it is advised that patients contact UnitedHealthcare directly to better understand their individual impact based on plan structure.
Frequently Asked Questions – NY Self-Insured, VT Self-Insured and VT-Fully Insured Plans