{"id":239453,"date":"2026-04-07T23:01:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-07T23:01:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/239453\/"},"modified":"2026-04-07T23:01:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-07T23:01:07","slug":"memorial-hermann-blue-cross-blue-shield-of-texas-remain-at-impasse-leaving-patients-out-of-network","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/239453\/","title":{"rendered":"Memorial Hermann, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas remain at impasse, leaving patients out of network"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Memorial Hermann and BCBSTX remain at odds, leaving patients out of network. A continuity of care option exists, but advocates say it can be complex.<\/p>\n<p>HOUSTON \u2014 Negotiations between Memorial Hermann and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas remain stalled, leaving thousands of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.khou.com\/article\/news\/local\/blue-cross-blue-shield-memorial-hermann-health-system-out-of-network\/285-866f045e-c78e-4b5c-ae3a-ba8bedfb67ca\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer nofollow\">patients temporarily out of network<\/a> as both sides work toward a new agreement.<\/p>\n<p>Memorial Hermann said there are no new updates in the ongoing contract dispute, which has disrupted access to care for patients who rely on the health system, one of the largest in Southeast Texas.<\/p>\n<p>RELATED: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.khou.com\/article\/news\/local\/blue-cross-blue-shield-memorial-hermann-health-system-out-of-network\/285-866f045e-c78e-4b5c-ae3a-ba8bedfb67ca\" class=\"cms__embed-related-story__link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">If you have Blue Cross Blue Shield health insurance, you&#8217;ll want to know about this big change<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Patient advocate Bonnie Sheeren said the impact is significant, especially for those receiving specialized or ongoing treatment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s our burn center, that\u2019s our level one trauma center, oh my gosh, this is not good,\u201d Sheeren said.<\/p>\n<p>According to Memorial Hermann\u2019s website, patients affected by the dispute can apply for continued in-network coverage through a \u201ccontinuity of care\u201d request. The process allows certain patients \u2014 particularly those with serious or ongoing medical needs \u2014 to continue seeing their current providers for a limited time.<\/p>\n<p>However, Sheeren warned that the process may be difficult to navigate without assistance.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPatients are going to have to get help, they don\u2019t know what an NPI number is, that\u2019s national provider information code, right? They\u2019re going to have to talk to their doctor or their doctor\u2019s office to get that,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>The continuity of care form requires information from both the patient and their healthcare provider, which can slow down the process. Sheeren recommends patients contact their doctor\u2019s office, specifically a business manager, for help completing the form.<\/p>\n<p>While forms can be mailed or faxed, Sheeren suggests submitting requests online through a patient portal for faster processing.<\/p>\n<p>More urgent cases \u2014 such as patients in the third trimester of pregnancy or those undergoing active cancer treatment \u2014 may be prioritized for review.<\/p>\n<p>Until a new agreement is reached, patients may need to seek care from in-network providers or navigate the continuity of care process to avoid disruptions.<\/p>\n<p>Got a news tip or story idea? Email us at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.khou.com\/article\/news\/local\/memorial-hermann-blue-cross-blue-shield-of-texas-no-deal\/mailto:newstips@khou.com\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">newstips@khou.com<\/a>\u00a0or call 713-521-4310 and include the best way to reach you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Memorial Hermann and BCBSTX remain at odds, leaving patients out of network. A continuity of care option exists,&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":239454,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[27,29,28],"class_list":["post-239453","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-texas","tag-texas","tag-texas-headlines","tag-texas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239453","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=239453"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239453\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/239454"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=239453"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=239453"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=239453"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}