PHOENIX — Phoenix Children’s and Aetna have announced a multi-year agreement allowing families to continue receiving in-network coverage.
The contract includes an effective date of Aug. 7, 2023, impacting many families who have received services since then.
According to the announcement, Phoenix Children’s will continue to offer comprehensive pediatric healthcare services for Aetna members, including inpatient care, outpatient care, physician and ancillary providers, imaging, laboratory tests, surgery, emergency department care, specialty, and urgent care centers, as well as other Phoenix Children’s facilities and services.
ABC15 previously spoke to multiple parents who were concerned about their coverage after the contract between Aetna and Phoenix Children’s ended in August.
When the contract ended, Aetna originally told ABC15 that Phoenix Children's would have to honor in-network rates for 180 days. They also said parents could apply for transition of care benefits.
But when ABC15 reached out to Phoenix Children's, the hospital said they were told certain patients approved by Aetna would get in-network rates and only for a short period of time.
“All they said was they no longer work with Phoenix Children's, and that we needed to have a new provider starting Monday,” said Mackenzie Cruz, a parent who had been working to plan surgery for her 3-year-old in August.
"I'm still very, very stressed out about it all," Susan Harris, whose son has had several surgeries and therapy at PCH, told ABC15 at the time.
The new agreement offers hope for those who have been in limbo, looking for other solutions and services.
“We recognize contract discussions can be especially stressful on the one group of people we are all aiming to serve – patient families – and we don’t take this responsibility to get it right lightly,” said Robert L. Meyer, President and CEO of Phoenix Children’s, in a news release Friday. “Phoenix Children’s has a duty to our growing community to ensure payer agreements address the often-complex medical needs of kids and support the exceptional care we provide as Arizona’s only pediatric health system. We are proud to reach such an agreement with Aetna and to remain an in-network health system for Aetna members.”
Videos in the player above highlight ABC15's previous coverage of the contract negotiations.
