The parent company of Bryan-based St. Joseph Health announces a new contract with Blue Cross-Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX).
The new contract, effective January 8, follows the termination of the previous agreement on December 16.
The news release from Houston-based St. Luke’s Health CEO Doug Lawson states the new contract will “provide the value driven care our community relies upon by addressing St. Luke’s financial health.”
A statement released Saturday from BCBSTX senior vice president of Texas health care delivery Shara McClure said in part “We advocated on our members’ behalf to keep health care prices affordable, particularly during a global pandemic when access to care is critical”.
News release from St. Luke’s Health:
St. Luke’s Health has reached an agreement with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) on a new contract that will ensure coverage for 65,000 BCBSTX patients who choose to receive their health care at the hospitals in the St. Luke’s Health network.
The new agreement is effective January 8, 2021. The following is a statement about the agreement from T. Douglas Lawson, CEO of St. Luke’s Health:
“This new contract is an affirmation of how important the choice to receive the accessible, value-driven medical care that we provide at St. Luke’s Health is to the health of our community. The support St. Luke’s Health received from patients, providers, employers and other leaders was tremendous. Termination of the contract last month was a difficult decision, especially in the face of COVID-19, but we knew it was a necessary decision as we could only continue to provide the value-driven care our community relies upon by addressing St. Luke’s financial health. This agreement does that.
“As this new agreement goes into effect, our focus remains where it has always been–on patients. We’re eager to continue working with those BCBSTX customers who have remained under our care, and to working with those who find themselves in need of hospital-based care in the future.”
St. Luke’s Health is a trusted and highly regarded resource in the greater Houston medical community, with an integrated health network dedicated to delivering advanced medical care and research, compassionate care and a Christian ministry of healing. In addition to its unique academic and community partnerships with Baylor College of Medicine, Texas A&M University, and the Texas Heart Institute, St. Luke’s Health is nationally recognized as having some of the best physicians and hospitals in the country.
US News & World Report ranks Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center as the number two hospital in Houston and the third best hospital in the state, with their programs in oncology, cardiology, orthopedics, neurology, gastroenterology and geriatrics rated among the best in the country.
The new agreement with BCBSTX will help St. Luke’s Health preserve the type of value-driven, high quality, and innovative care our patients and the community have come to expect. Choice is important and consumers rely on St. Luke’s Health for services ranging from life-saving care at our regional facilities in communities like Lake Jackson, Lufkin, and Bryan-College Station to pioneering treatments such as double lung transplant care for COVID patients at our flagship academic medical center at Baylor St. Luke’s.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas statement to WTAW News:
Through determined efforts on both sides, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas has reached an agreement with CommonSpirit Health.
“We advocated on our members’ behalf to keep health care prices affordable, particularly during a global pandemic when access to care is critical,” said Shara McClure, senior vice president of Texas health care delivery for BCBSTX.
The new agreement allows BCBSTX members to use in-network benefits at CommonSpirit hospitals throughout Houston and East Texas, including the CHI St. Luke’s and CHI St. Joseph hospitals.