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CAMC is now back with The Health Plan after near breakup over WVU Medicine

CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The Health Plan, a managed care company based in Wheeling, says it’s back in business with Charleston Area Medical Center.

“This renewal ensures all persons insured through The Health Plan will have no gaps in coverage at CAMC facilities,” The Health Plan stated.

The relationship between the managed care organization and the giant healthcare provider went in doubt earlier this year after the Health Plan announced it would unite with WVU Medicine.

CAMC in September informed The Health Plan it would terminate its contract at the end of this year. That could have affected hundreds of people insured through The Health Plan.

That situation changed over the past few days, started with a letter The Health Plan sent Nov. 27 to the state Insurance Commissioner, terminating the prior arrangement with WVU Medicine.

Then on Wednesday, The Health Plan issued a statement publicly acknowledging it would no longer become one entity with WVU Medicine but making reference to a broader healthcare network.

“While this effective transaction is no longer moving forward, The Health Plan remains committed to building a statewide integrated healthcare finance and delivery network that will include all major health systems,” the Health Plan stated a day ago.

And now today, with yet another statement, The Health Plan said it’s back in the loop with CAMC.

“CAMC shares our dedication to better health. They offer a complete range of toplevel services – including one of the top heart programs in the United States,” stated Jason Landers, senior vice president of provider delivery services at The Health Plan.

That is a turnaround from just a couple of months ago when CAMC told The Health Plan it would terminate its contract at the end of this year.

At the time, Health Plan President Jim Pennington said CAMC’s decision was a reaction to the partnership with WVU Medicine.

“CAMC sees that as an aggressive play on WVU’s part. In our meeting they called them ‘the northern aggressor’ several times,” Pennington said earlier this year.

A statement put out by WVU Medicine earlier this week said the relationship was being re-evaluated but suggested the two organizations were better off in a committed relationship over the long haul.

“Both The Health Plan and WVU Medicine continue to believe that coming together is critical, as both believe they can better manage the healthcare challenges of West Virginia more effectively together than apart,” WVU Medicine stated.

“To that end, they both remain committed to building an integrated healthcare finance and delivery network, one that will allow for the better coordination of care and management of the population’s health.”

 

 

 





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