Today, Senator Reverend Warnock encouraged UnitedHealthcare and Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) to reach an agreement as soon as possible on their contract in order to keep health care costs low for Georgians

On May 1, 2023, NGHS and UnitedHealthcare were unable to renew a contract before its expiration, impacting 12,000 Georgians 

Senator Reverend Warnock to Northeast Georgia Health System: “Every day that passes without a negotiated contract means patients in Georgia will have to pay substantial out-of-pocket costs or completely forego needed and necessary care”

Senator Reverend Warnock to UnitedHealthcare: “No health care company should ever put profit over patients, especially while our health care system is in a fragile state”

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA) sent letters to UnitedHealthcare and Northeast Georgia Health System (NGHS) pushing the insurance company and the health provider to reach an agreement that will best serve Georgia patients. Reaching an agreement will bring 12,000 Georgians back into in-network health coverage, and failure to reach an agreement means families will have a gap in coverage that forces them to either find new heath care providers or forgo essential care. The letters from Senator Warnock come after the May 1, 2023 expiration of a contract agreement. In 2021, Senator Warnock sent letters to Anthem and UnitedHealthcare pushing them to address expired contracts with other major Georgia health systems. 

“Every day that passes without a negotiated contract means patients in Georgia will have to pay substantial out-of-pocket costs or completely forego needed and necessary care,” said Senator Reverend Warnock to Northeast Georgia Health System.

“No health care company should ever put profit over patients, especially while our health care system is in a fragile state,” said Senator Reverend Warnock to UnitedHealthcare.

Senator Warnock is a steadfast champion of bolstering health care access for all Georgians. As a pastor and legislator, Senator Warnock has consistently been on the front lines fighting to expand Medicaid and close the Medicaid coverage gap in Georgia as well as in the nine other holdout states. Senator Warnock also successfully capped the cost of insulin for seniors and is working to make insulin affordable for all Georgians. He recently introduced bipartisan legislation that would help curb hospital closures in rural communities and is urging the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to take action and address short-term limited duration insurance plans, or junk plans, which fail to provide comprehensive health insurance coverage. Additionally, last December, Senator Warnock secured $746 million in federal funding for teaching hospitals in Georgia to expand and strengthen the health care workforce, including communities with health care workforce shortages. 

See here for the letter to UnitedHealthcare.

See here for the letter to Northeast Georgia Health System.

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