Just three of seven New Jersey hospitals that filed suit against Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey last year over the insurer's tiered OMNIA health plan remain in the suit, reports Asbury Park Press.
The lawsuit, brought by hospitals Horizon designated as Tier 2 facilities, demands the insurer make public the criteria it used to determine hospitals' rankings in its OMNIA plan. The complaint claims the Tier 2 designation has harmed the hospitals' reputations and patient volumes.
Since the hospitals filed suit in December, four providers have dropped out of the case, the most recent being Capital Health in Trenton and JFK Health in Edison. Trinitas Regional Medical Center in Elizabeth and St. Luke's Warren Campus in Phillipsburg withdrew from the lawsuit earlier this year. Remaining hospitals include CentraState Healthcare System in Freehold, Holy Name Medical Center in Teaneck and The Valley Hospital in Ridgewood.
The hospital group's lawyer Steven Goldman has assured the lawsuit will go forward.
"Capital Health and JFK's withdrawals from the suit are unrelated to the merits of the case, but rather involve circumstances unique to those hospitals," Mr. Goldman said in a prepared statement, according to Asbury Park Press.