MultiCare insurance talks put patients on notice over possible coverage disruption
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Premera said MultiCare issued a termination notice deadline of May 31.
- Some Regence commercial members also at risk with contract deadline of May 10.
- Premera said 163,000 members used MultiCare sites in 2025 statewide.
Tacoma-based MultiCare Health System is in negotiations with at least two insurance entities whose patients are starting to receive letters warning of possible coverage termination if new terms are not reached.
Premera Blue Cross in an online post April 16 stated that MultiCare had “issued a termination notice to Premera Blue Cross, effective May 31, 2026. This termination will impact all commercial plans, along with Premera Blue Cross individual plans.”
Premera noted, “These negotiations do not impact Premera members with Medicare Supplement coverage.”
MultiCare’s Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue is not part of the contract termination.
The contract termination would affect Premera Blue Cross patients statewide through the MultiCare network in employer-sponsored plans and individual exchange plans.
The contracts affected include those covering MultiCare clinics, hospitals and providers, including Yakima Memorial Hospital.
The health system also is in talks with Regence in a contract representing commercial members in Grays Harbor, Thurston and Yakima counties.
“If a new agreement is not reached by Sunday, May 10, 2026, MultiCare will be out of network for Regence members receiving care at MultiCare Yakima Valley locations and MultiCare Capital Medical Center,” the health system stated on its website.
MultiCare, Regence and Premera have had other contract disputes in recent years, including 2024 when both reached new contract terms after potential terminations.
‘Rates have not kept pace’
MultiCare, in a statement, told The News Tribune that “Premera is one of our largest commercial insurers, but its reimbursement rates for hospital and clinician services are among the lowest.”
It added, “Those rates have not kept pace with rising costs driven by inflation, workforce needs, and investments necessary to preserve services and ensure long-term stability for the communities we serve.”
Numbers provided to The News Tribune from Premera representatives showed that last year 163,000 Premera members received care at MultiCare sites across Washington, more than 61,000 of those in Pierce County, where more than 80,000 Premera members would be impacted.
David Condon is vice president of commercial business at Premera Blue Cross. In an interview Friday with The News Tribune, he stated that the rising costs is the heart of the issue that needs to be addressed.
“We’re at a breaking point now with affordability, and we really want to get to the core of what is driving those costs and, really, alongside MultiCare, bring those costs down,” Condon said.
“And, it’s not necessarily whether the cost of going up, but what is the size of those requests and how can we incrementally get there,” he added.
Condon said one of the sticking points is tied to rates charged statewide, which, he contended, did not reflect the difference in median incomes in each area such as Yakima and Spokane compared with the Puget Sound region.
“One of their requests is to have the same rates across the state,” he said. “We all know we have different economies in the state, and the reality is we have to be reasonable as we look at that.”
MultiCare, in its statement, said, “Our priority is to secure terms that allow us to continue caring for Premera members while also supporting the doctors, nurses, and teams who provide that care every day.”
The health system has its own web page devoted to the current Premera contract impasse, which on Friday stated, “At this time, we remain misaligned on financial terms.”
‘They dumped this on me and a lot of others’
According to Premera representatives, Blue Cross Blue Shield members who are part of the Federal Employee Program will also be affected if MultiCare leaves the Premera network. Those members with MultiCare providers have started to receive notification letters.
One of those members is Craig Barthuly of Tacoma, who recently received a letter warning of loss of coverage. He is receiving cancer treatment at Tacoma General. His insurance is under the federal benefits program.
“I’m in Tacoma General doing treatments for recovery from CLL (Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia),” he told The News Tribune in a phone interview on Friday. “It’s in remission, but I still have to take the pills, and also I have to take IVs again for my platelets.”
“And now they give me this letter,” he added, which was from Blue Cross Blue Shield. He said he was on the phone for more than three hours trying to get answers from both the hospital and his insurer on continuing coverage if new contract terms are not reached.
“It’s like they dumped this on me and a lot of others,” he said.
Barthuly’s letter and Premera’s website state that those undergoing care for pregnancy, long-term or chronic conditions or other serious, complex cases may qualify for “continuity of care benefits” for up to 90 days.
According to Premera, letters will be sent April 30 to all other members who have seen a MultiCare provider, notifying them of the potential network disruption.
Additional information also is available online, with FAQs and more:
MultiCare/Regence coverage website
MultiCare/Premera coverage website
Premera also helps to process claims in the BlueCard program for those covered under independent Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, such as Anthem. The program enables eligible members of Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) plans to access in-network healthcare services nationwide.
Such plans are typically identified by a “PPO” suitcase logo on the insurer’s card.
If MultiCare does leave Premera’s network, a Premera representative told The News Tribune that patients with BlueCard coverage can “call the number on the back of their ID card and their plan’s local customer service team will be able to help verify in-network providers they can see.”
