Could Blue Cross Blue Shield Antitrust Settlement Tip Scales for Providers?

Oct 18
Oct 18, 2024

The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) and its 33 Blues plans have agreed to pay $2.8 billion — and execute significant operational changes — as part of a tentative settlement that would resolve a long-running class-action case brought by health care providers.

The proposed settlement marks the second time in recent years that Blues plans have inked a deal to settle an antitrust case brought against them, and it is the largest antitrust settlement in the history of the U.S. health care sector. Industry experts tell AIS Health, a division of MMIT, that the terms of the latest settlement could alter the balance of power in Blues plans’ contract negotiations with providers.
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Leslie Small

Leslie has been working in journalism since 2009 and reporting on the health care industry since 2014. She has covered the many ups and downs of the Affordable Care Act exchanges, the failed health insurer mega-mergers, and hundreds of other storylines spanning subjects such as Medicaid managed care, Medicare Advantage, employer-sponsored insurance, and prescription drug coverage. As the managing editor of Health Plan Weekly and Radar on Drug Benefits, she writes and edits for both publications while overseeing a small team of reporters who also focus on the managed care sector. Before joining AIS Health, she was a senior editor for the e-newsletter Fierce Health Payer, and she started her career as a copy editor at multiple local newspapers. She graduated with a dual degree in journalism and political science from Penn State University.