DALLAS — After months of negotiations, Blue Cross Blue Shield and Baylor Scott & White have reached an agreement to keep patients in the network.
BSWH posted an update to its website that read, “Baylor Scott & White and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas have reached an agreement that will keep BSW in network. As related documents are finalized, BCBS members will continue receiving uninterrupted, in-network care from BSW.”
In June, both sides announced it had reached a temporary agreement to keep patients in network through Oct. 1 after their initial deal was set to expire on July 1. That enabled them to continue working on a long-term agreement without any disruptions to patient coverage.
“We share a commitment to our communities and are proud to preserve their choice of high-quality, in-network providers,” Baylor Scott and White said in a statement.
The negotiations were centered around a disparity between the increased post-pandemic reimbursement rates Baylor Scott and White is requesting and the amount that Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas is willing to agree upon.
No details of the new contract were released.
Baylor Scott and White is the largest nonprofit health system in the state with 51 hospitals. Blue Cross Blue Shield is far and away the largest insurer in the state with nearly 25% of the market share, according to the Texas Department of Insurance.
Despite months of negotiations, BSWH and BCBS have a unique history that started in Dallas.
According to the Texas State Historical Association, Blue Cross Blue Shield was formed out of Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas in 1929. A former Dallas school superintendent took on a role with Baylor University leading the Dallas hospital units. He created a plan allowing teachers to contribute fifty cents a month guaranteeing them up to 21 days of hospital care at Baylor Hospital in Dallas. The “Baylor Plan” was the original commercial insurance plan.