A judge has lifted a stay on Woonsocket, R.I.-based Landmark Medical Center's lawsuit against Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island and will hold a hearing on the merits of the case, according to a Providence Business Journal report.
The suit claims the payor "starved" Landmark with unjustly inadequate reimbursements. The financially-troubled community hospital has been in court-appointed receivership for the past three years, but its sale to Boston-based Steward Health Care is pending. Blue Cross contended the suit was filed without merit. If the judge rules in favor of the insurer, Landmark Special Master Jonathan Savage will be responsible for Blue Cross' legal fees. Mr. Savage brought the suit.
In the meantime, Woonsocket Mayor Leo Fontaine has called upon Attorney General Pete Kilmartin to review negotiations between Blue Cross and Steward, saying, "I am no expert in antitrust law, but I have not been convinced that this is really a fight about reimbursement rates. It looks a lot more like our local non-profit health insurer is using its dominant position in the marketplace to bully a failing hospital out of existence," according to a Valley Breeze report.
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The suit claims the payor "starved" Landmark with unjustly inadequate reimbursements. The financially-troubled community hospital has been in court-appointed receivership for the past three years, but its sale to Boston-based Steward Health Care is pending. Blue Cross contended the suit was filed without merit. If the judge rules in favor of the insurer, Landmark Special Master Jonathan Savage will be responsible for Blue Cross' legal fees. Mr. Savage brought the suit.
In the meantime, Woonsocket Mayor Leo Fontaine has called upon Attorney General Pete Kilmartin to review negotiations between Blue Cross and Steward, saying, "I am no expert in antitrust law, but I have not been convinced that this is really a fight about reimbursement rates. It looks a lot more like our local non-profit health insurer is using its dominant position in the marketplace to bully a failing hospital out of existence," according to a Valley Breeze report.
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