The parent of Lehigh Valley Hospital and its affiliated medical offices says it will no longer accept UnitedHealthcare insurance beginning in 2026.
That could change if the insurer addresses what Lehigh Valley Health Network calls “reimbursement issues.”
Lehigh Valley Health Network, part of Jefferson Health, announced the change Monday.
UnitedHealthcare responded by accusing Lehigh Valley Health Network of “making misleading and potentially false public statements about the status of our relationship” at the time of year when patients across the United States are evaluating their health insurance coverage.
Network officials say they’ve been working with UnitedHealthcare for more than two years to address what they call “unfair payment practices.”
“United refuses to pay LVHN in accordance with the rates and expectations that were originally agreed upon,” Lehigh Valley Health Network said in a statement. “We have worked tirelessly to reach a resolution with United, but they’re not interested in finding a fair solution for our patients.
“As a result, we have made the decision to terminate LVHN’s contract with UnitedHealthcare unless UnitedHealthcare works with Jefferson Health to remedy the LVHN reimbursement issues.”
Lehigh Valley Health Network says it intends to drop UnitedHealthcare as an accepted in-network insurer Jan. 25, 2026, for Medicare Advantage patients and April 25, 2026, for commercial patients.
Effective on those dates, UnitedHealthcare patients will be out-of-network at LVHN, network spokeswoman Jamie Stover said.
The network advises UnitedHealthcare patients to keep their Lehigh Valley Health Network scheduled treatments and appointments until then.
The change does not impact other Jefferson Health providers, which are in the Philadelphia metropolitan area and surrounding counties. Creating one of the nation’s top-15 largest nonprofit health systems, a 2024 merger made the legacy company of Jefferson the parent of Lehigh Valley Health Network, its Lehigh Valley Hospital locations and other holdings. Jefferson Health earlier this month said 600 to 700 employees, or about 1% of staff, were being laid off.
Lehigh Valley Health Network’s statement Tuesday continued: “We encourage UnitedHealthcare members to contact UnitedHealthcare to understand their coverage options and advocate for continued access to Jefferson Health and LVHN providers.”
In a statement to lehighvalleylive.com, a UnitedHealthcare spokesperson said the company is “in the process of validating” a notice received Monday from Lehigh Valley Health Network “intending to potentially end our contract.”
“We delivered a proposal to Lehigh Valley in April,” the company states. “We have yet to receive a counter proposal from the health system, whose last proposal was provided in December 2024 and included a near 30% price hike in the first year of our contract.
“Lehigh Valley is making misleading and potentially false public statements about the status of our relationship in the middle of the Medicare Annual Enrollment period presumably as a negotiating tactic. We ask Lehigh Valley to join us at the negotiating table and work toward an agreement that is affordable rather than using consumers as leverage to significantly drive up health care costs for Pennsylvanians and local companies.”
Jefferson Health Executive Vice President Mark Whalen responded Monday by stating: “The only thing misleading here is United Healthcare portraying this as a standard negotiation when, in fact, this is a direct result of United not abiding by the terms of the contract they agreed to. This ongoing dispute is caused by United Healthcare’s implementation of a multiyear 30% price decrease that was not agreed to, not accepted and is not sustainable. We have been actively attempting to resolve this issue for the past several years before issuing today’s termination notification.”
The UnitedHealthcare announcement comes three years after Lehigh Valley Health Network relented on threats to drop Aetna in-network benefits, also over a patient coverage dispute.
It also comes as notices of rising health insurance premiums are landing in patients’ mailboxes. That’s tied, at least in part, to a debate at the center of the ongoing federal government shutdown, as Democrats seize on these rising premiums to pressure Republicans into extending expiring subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, often referred to as Obamacare.
President Donald Trump and GOP leaders say they’ll consider extending enhanced tax credits to lower rates that otherwise expire at year’s end — but only after Democrats vote to reopen the government. In the meantime, people enrolled in the plans are already being notified of hefty premium increases for 2026.
UnitedHealthcare is the company whose executive Brian Thompson was gunned down last Dec. 4 in Midtown Manhattan. Alleged gunman Luigi Mangione was arrested five days later in Altoona, Pennsylvania.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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