BP Diaz calls on United Healthcare to
reach an agreement with Montefiore
BY JASON COHEN
As the deadline for United
Healthcare to renew its agreement
with Montefi ore has
passed there are now more
than 60,000 patients without
health care insurance and access
to doctors.
On Wednesday, Borough
President Ruben Diaz Jr.
called for United Health come
to the table, put greed aside
and shown good faith in negotiations.
As of Jan. 1, the contract
between United Healthcare
and Montefi ore expired without
a new contract in place to
cover the care that Montefi ore
provides to patients with
United/Oxford commercial
health plans, United Medicaid
Community Plans and United
Medicare DSNP Plans.
As a result, many Bronx,
Westchester and Rockland
County residents have lost
their in-network access preferred
Montefi ore doctors and
hospitals in the middle of a
global pandemic. Diaz wrote a
letter to United in October, but
received a very perfunctory
SINCE 1978
response.
“The patients enrolled in
that network now fi nd themselves
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in a dire situation” he
said. “For patients this is a
devastating outcome.”
In December, Congressman
Ritchie Torres urged
United to keep its partnership
with Montefi ore.
Montefi ore Medical Center
is in contract negotiations with
United Healthcare concerning
health coverage and premium
payments, yet United Healthcare
refuses to come to the negotiation
table in good faith
and is putting patients at risk
of losing coverage. In the fi rst
three quarters of 2020, when
the pandemic was ravaging
the Bronx, United Healthcare
made over $15 billion in profits
and yet it is unclear if those
profi ts are being used to improve
patient healthcare.
Montefi ore is only asking
for rates that will put United
on the same level as other insurance
payors. It serves a
population made up of over 85
percent of patients covered by
Medicare or Medicaid. With
these numbers continuing to
increase because of the pandemic,
the hospital doesn’t
have the resources to cover
$300 million plus in incremental
pandemic related costs
while payors or United profi t.
Diaz stressed that in a borough
that has been hurt badly
by COVID-19 Bronxites need
insurance more than ever.
He feels this leaves them with
three options: pay more to see
a Montefi ore doctor, fi nd a new
one or the most dangerous one,
not see a physician at all.
“They (Montefi ore) need
more resources to continue to
provide quality health care for
the people of the borough,” he
stressed. “It’s even more inexcusable
to do this against the
poor and working class during
this pandemic.
Montefi ore has been a
friend of Blacks and Latinos.
Montefi ore knows the community.
So we trust their services.”
Among the people affected
by United not renewing its
partnership with Montefi ore
is Bronx resident Amy Martinez.
Martinez has been seeing
doctors at Montefi ore for several
years and is quite upset.
“United Healthcare needs
to work with Montefi ore and
reach an agreement,” she exclaimed.
We are living in unprecedented
times and health
care is needed more than ever.
United needs to show they
care and be on right side of
history.”