{"id":3509,"date":"2025-10-14T23:27:09","date_gmt":"2025-10-14T23:27:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/3509\/"},"modified":"2025-10-14T23:27:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T23:27:09","slug":"florida-blue-has-taken-memorial-healthcare-system-out-of-its-provider-network-heres-what-you-should-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/3509\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Blue has Taken Memorial Healthcare System Out of its Provider Network: Here\u2019s What You Should Know"},"content":{"rendered":"

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As a physician and surgeon at Joe DiMaggio Children\u2019s Hospital, I often see kids and families in crisis. Regardless of severity, having an ill child, or one who may need surgery or hospital admission, is incredibly stressful for the entire family. This is especially evident at a facility like Joe DiMaggio where we provide complex medical care to the sickest children in the community. Our focus is always on minimizing suffering and getting kids back to good health, school, and the activities they enjoy, and our record of quality, safety, and outcomes shows we do it extremely well.<\/p>\n

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Today, a new kind of pain is impacting patients and families at the children\u2019s hospital and throughout Memorial Healthcare System that\u2019s beyond a doctor\u2019s clinical abilities to remedy. It\u2019s the anxiety and dread that comes with having the doctors you know and trust no longer available for your family\u2019s care, the result of Florida Blue\u2019s decision to remove Memorial\u2019s in-network status from the health insurance it provides, and it\u2019s something your friends, neighbors, or maybe even your own family is experiencing right now.<\/p>\n

REAL CONSEQUENCES<\/p>\n

The choice by Florida Blue places patients at risk of higher costs, disrupted care, and leave families facing an impossible decision: either self-pay the increased costs to stay with the providers that know them best, or start over, often in the middle of a treatment regimen, with a new medical team in a different healthcare system that may require significant travel to access a lesser level of care. All because Florida Blue refuses to provide market-based reimbursement for the services we deliver, an action that prioritizes profits over patients and removes the easy access to care our community depends on.<\/p>\n

With more than 150,000 Florida Blue\u2019s policy holders utilizing the Memorial system in the past two years alone, the impact is significant for Broward, Palm Beach, and Miami Dade county residents. While federal law requires emergency services remain covered at in-network rates and there may be short-term exceptions for those few who fall under Continuity of Care provisions, the majority of Florida Blue\u2019s customers are left with only the aforementioned options, neither of which serves them or their families well.<\/p>\n

WHAT TO DO<\/p>\n

The situation, while stressful and disruptive for patients and caregivers, is hopefully not permanent, and there are actions those most affected can take:<\/p>\n

Patients in active treatment should call Florida Blue and ask about receiving Continuity of Care benefits, which would allow them to continue to see their Memorial providers at in-network rates, although usually only for 90 days.
\nAll Florida Blue policy holders should be in touch with the insurance company to let them know how important Memorial\u2019s in-network status is to the health and well-being of them and their loved ones.
\nIf Florida Blue keeps Memorial out-of-network, a list of insurers that have Memorial in-network is at\u00a0https:\/\/www.mhs.net\/patients-and-visitors\/insurance\/insurance-plans<\/a>.
\nOpen enrollment provides the option to switch plans, beginning October 15 (through December 7, 2025) for Medicare and November 1 (through January 15, 2026) for ACA marketplace plans.<\/p>\n

WE\u2019VE GOT YOUR BACK<\/p>\n

Memorial\u2019s hospitals, including Joe DiMaggio Children\u2019s Hospital, are public, safety net facilities, meaning we care for everyone, regardless of an individual\u2019s ability to pay. That\u2019s the beauty and privilege of being a practicing physician with Memorial. My colleagues and I can focus on what matters most, caring for patients, and don\u2019t worry about the financials.<\/p>\n

That said, the cost of uncompensated care in the last fiscal year alone was more than $160 million, a shortfall our healthcare system covered out of its annual operating budget and didn\u2019t pass on to local taxpayers. We consider that an investment in our community \u2013 the same as our funding of innovation, medical education, and charitable outreach \u2013 because we believe South Floridians should be able to access high quality care and services close to home.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s something to consider: If you or loved one couldn\u2019t afford the cost of their services, do you think Florida Blue would step up for your family, to the detriment of their profits, to ensure they were cared for?<\/p>\n

Because that\u2019s something we\u2019ve done at Memorial Healthcare System for more than 70 years.<\/p>\n

Dr. Holly Neville is fellowship-trained general surgeon and pediatric surgeon, associate chief medical officer, chief physician, and program director for the General Surgery residency at Memorial Healthcare System.<\/p>\n


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