Montefiore Reaches Deal To Again Accept United Health Insurance - Patch.com

HUDSON VALLEY, NY — Montefiore Health System and UnitedHealthcare have reunited in a deal that could help to reunite thousands of Hudson Valley residents with their doctors.

UnitedHealthcare announced on Thursday that it has reached a long-term agreement with Montefiore Health System to restore access to the system's hospitals, facilities and its physicians for people enrolled in UnitedHealthcare and Oxford employer-sponsored plans, as well as UnitedHealthcare's Medicare Advantage Dual Special Needs Plan, effective Dec. 1, 2021.

"We recognize and appreciate the care Montefiore provides is important and personal to our members, and we also know the negotiation process has been difficult for them," UnitedHealthcare New York CEO Michael McGuire said in a statement announcing the new pact. "Our top priority has been ensuring the people and employers we're honored to serve in New York have access to quality, more affordable health care, and this new agreement helps accomplish that goal."

In New York, UnitedHealthcare insures more than 3.7 million people enrolled in employer-sponsored, individual, Medicare and Medicaid plans, with a network of 319 hospitals and more than 111,000 physicians and other health care providers. Since January of this year, however, Montefiore was not part of that network, forcing many to find new providers — something the new agreement will rectify, beginning next year.

The pact will restore in-network access to Montefiore's 10 hospitals and more than 200 outpatient facilities in the Bronx, Westchester, Rockland and Orange counties.

"The long-term health of our patients has always been the central focus of our negotiations," Montefiore Health System VP Colleen Blye said of the deal. "Over the past ten months, the support of our local employers, elected officials and communities has been overwhelming, and we are pleased that our patients once again have in-network access to their trusted Montefiore hospitals and providers."