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Setting the
Record Straight on
Mercy Negotiations
By Stephanie Vojicic
Nearly 1 In 12 U.S. adults owe medical
debt, and nearly 67% of all bankruptcies in
America are tied to medical expense issues,
whether due to the high costs of medical
bills or the loss of income after taking time
off from work.
At Anthem, we believe that affordability
matters, as nearly 50% of Americans say
they have difficulty paying their medical
bills. Ask Missouri employers who directly
pay their employees’ healthcare bills
how decades of skyrocketing costs have
impaired their ability to hire, invest, and
grow. Local, state and federal officials
are also concerned about affordability
as they seek to be good stewards of our
tax dollars.
Anthem, and others in our industry, work
to ensure that the prices for healthcare
services provided by ever-expanding
health systems are reasonable and
account for inflation. We achieve this by
working collaboratively towards long term
contracts which create stability for those
who purchase our products and services.
Over the past several months we have
been working on an agreement to keep
Mercy doctors and facilities in our networks.
This is about what you and
your employer pay for healthcare
To be clear, Anthem has offered Mercy
a multi-year agreement that includes
moderate price increases above the
current rate of inflation each year for the
next three years. Mercy has rejected and
responded with a multi-year demand for
increases that exhibits a clear disregard
for affordability – for employers, TaftHartley programs, government budgets,
the people covered by these plans, and
not coincidentally, Mercy patients.
Mercy and Anthem have reached
agreement on terms for our Medicaid
and Medicare plans, but Mercy is refusing
to sign these agreements to leverage
getting more money from employer-
sponsored plans. Purposefully putting
Missouri’s most vulnerable people in
jeopardy to extract higher prices is a
distressing tactic that we will not accept.
Higher costs for you. Higher cash flow and
profits for an ever-expanding Mercy. We are
stewards of your money, and we take that
responsibility seriously.
Anthem remains
committed to Missourians
It’s important to remember that Mercy
remains in-network with Anthem through
the end of 2024. If Mercy chooses to become
an out-of-network option starting January
1, 2025, we are ready to help our members
fully understand whether their plan has an
out of network benefit or how to transition
to one of the thousands of alternative innetwork providers who also provide quality
medical care.
And for those with serious and complex
medical conditions, we will ensure they
can continue their care with their current
Mercy doctor.
Regardless of Mercy’s actions and demands
for more money, Anthem is here for our
members. Our member services team is
ready to help. Above all, we will continue to
protect access to high-quality, affordable
care for all Missourians.
For the latest updates related to our
ongoing negotiations with Mercy, please
visit Anthem.com/MercyMO.
Stephanie Vojicic is the president of Anthem
Blue Cross and Blue Shield in Missouri