St. Joseph’s Health inks new contracts with Excellus, Aetna

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — St. Joseph’s Health has new contractual agreements in place with both Rochester–based Excellus BlueCross BlueShield (BCBS) and Aetna. Excellus BCBS and St. Joseph’s Health reached a multi-year contract agreement that went into effect Jan. 1, 2025, and will keep St. Joseph’s Health in the Excellus BCBS provider network. In addition, St. Joseph’s Health and Aetna also agreed on a new multi-year contract that will reinstate in-network access to St. Joseph’s Health hospital, facilities, and health-care providers, per the St. Joseph’s Health website. No financial terms of either contract were released. “St. Joseph’s Health and Excellus BCBS are glad to reach an agreement that allows St. Joseph’s Health to remain in the Excellus BCBS network while preserving patients’ access to high-quality care that’s as affordable as possible,” per a joint statement released on the evening of Dec. 31. The statement went on to say that Excellus BCBS members can continue to seek care from St. Joseph’s Health “as they always have without disruption.” The two sides on Dec. 13 had agreed to a short-term extension of their in-network contract for both the hospital and physician practices through Feb. 28. Excellus BCBS is Central New York’s largest health insurer. St. Joseph’s Health also forwarded to CNYBJ its joint statement with Aetna. “We are pleased to share Aetna, a CVS Health company, and Trinity Health/St. Joseph’s Health have reached a multi-year agreement that will allow our valued patients and members to maintain the in-network access to the Trinity Health/St. Joseph’s Health hospitals, facilities, and health care providers they trust. We are thankful for everyone’s patience and support as we worked together to reach a fair agreement.”