Banner Health Clinic Fort Collins Co Blue Cross Blue Shield Accept
Thousands of Northern Colorado residents will have more choices and access to health care under a three-year contract between Banner Fort Collins Medical Center and one of Colorado's largest health insurance companies.
It closes a gap that caught some Fort Collins patients off guard and saddled them with large medical bills.
Beginning July 1, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield will cover inpatient, outpatient and emergency department services at Banner Fort Collins Medical Center, 4700 Lady Moon Drive, just west of Interstate 25 and Harmony Road.
Even though Banner's facilities in Greeley and Loveland were already in Anthem's network, Banner Fort Collins has been excluded since it opened in 2015. That left Poudre Valley Hospital, part of the UCHealth system, as Anthem's only provider in Fort Collins.
That meant Anthem patients who went to Banner Fort Collins paid more than if they had gone to PVH.
In addition to providing more choice for Anthem patients, the move provides a new, large pool of potential patients for Banner Fort Collins and "levels the playing field" in Fort Collins between Banner and UCHealth, said Banner Fort Collins CEO Margo Karsten.
"Strategically, there was a gap and confusion for the community, and we heard that frustration," Karsten said.
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Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield is one of the four largest health insurance providers in Colorado, along with Cigna, United Healthcare and Kaiser Permanente, according to the Colorado Division of Insurance.
Anthem officials declined to disclose membership numbers in Larimer County but said it insures about 1 million customers in Colorado.
The new contract with Banner Fort Collins comes too late to help Jim Mullin of Timnath, who got stuck with a large medical bill after rushing his daughter to Banner Fort Collins' emergency department when she was doubled over in pain. She was treated and released.
Weeks later, Mullin received a bill for nearly $2,000, and Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield declined to pay.
Mullin was unaware Banner Fort Collins was outside Anthem's network.
The federal Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, or EMTALA, prohibits emergency department staff from discussing insurance or a patient's financial status. It was designed to ensure a person's inability to pay did not prevent them from seeking medical treatment.
That meant Mullin was on the hook for the entire cost of the visit. Banner declined to negotiate the charges and eventually sent Mullin to collections, he said Thursday.
The contract "is good news," Mullin said and will prevent the same thing from happening to others.
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The contract for Banner Fort Collins means Banner now has contracts with the top five insurance carriers in Colorado. It has an exclusive hospital contract with Kaiser Permanente.
It "fulfills our mission of making health care easier for patients," said Jim Branom, payor and provider relations director for Banner Health's Western region.
Banner Fort Collins Medical Center has been growing since it opened in 2015. In 2017, it doubled the size of its medical office building when it expanded its pediatric, OB-GYN and family medicine services. It is currently adding six new beds to its 22-bed hospital and has room to add two patient towers that could accommodate up to 144 beds as well as a parking structure.
About Banner Fort Collins
2017 / 2018
Outpatient registrations (excluding the emergency department: 7,176 / 8,074
Emergency department visits: 8,945 / 8,250
Births and deliveries: 357 / 420
Average length of stay (excluding newborns): 2.45 days / 2.42
Pat Ferrier is a senior reporter covering business, health care and growth issues in Northern Colorado. Please support her work and that of other Coloradoan journalists by subscribing: See Coloradoan.com/subscribe to learn how.
Source: https://www.coloradoan.com/story/money/2019/04/26/banner-fort-collins-accept-anthem-blue-cross-blue-shield-insurance/3571727002/
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