Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) announced today that, as of midnight on October 1, most NGHS facilities have been forced out of the Anthem network. Their current contract between Anthem, formerly Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia, expired with no new agreement in place.
"Despite our determined efforts to protect in-network access for patients, Anthem continues to demand terms that would negatively impact the way patients receive care at NGHS," said Steve McNeilly, vice-president of Managed Care. "We have offered Anthem a proposal that is fair to both parties, yet they refuse to work with us in a meaningful way."
NGHS facilities currently out of network with Anthem are: all Northeast Georgia Medical Center (NGMC) hospitals; all Rehabilitation Institute, Imaging Center and Cancer Center locations; Hospice of NGMC, New Horizons Limestone and Lanier Park; Sleep Disorders Center; Laurelwood; all Urgent Care locations; all locations of The Heart Center of NGMC; and most Northeast Georgia Physicians Group (NGPG) locations. NGPG’s family medicine and internal medicine practices in Buford, Cumming, Dacula and Hamilton Mill are not affected by this negotiation and are still in-network.
Patients with Anthem insurance should continue to seek care with their doctors at NGHS facilities and should remember:
For more information about the negotiation and answers to frequently asked questions, visit www.nghs.com/anthem or call the NGHS Patient Information Line at 770-691-3588.