Henry County Medical Center
We are here for you,
no matter what
Depending on your plan, we can support you in a number of ways.
We’re providing dedicated care coordinators for all pregnant members transitioning to a new facility.
We’re committed to doing our part to support Henry County Medical Center, but it will take all of us to help this hospital reach sustainability and continue serving the community.
Here’s what we’ve learned and how we’ve responded.
In late May, we had a routine in-person meeting with HCMC leaders. Unfortunately, they didn’t talk with us about the financial challenges of their OB unit. We found out about the impending closure a week later, with a request to increase our payments by 500 percent.
Surprised and knowing what these services mean to the community, we immediately began to crunch the numbers. We evaluated claims for births at HCMC between 2009 and 2023, including the full set of services related to births. We found BlueCare’s reimbursement for obstetric care has actually increased from 2009 to 2019, ranging between $200 and $600 per patient.
Increasing OB rates by 500 percent is untenable, and sadly, even that amount wouldn’t make up the hospital’s overall projected shortfall this year.
But after taking a holistic look at HCMC’s situation and their current rates, we offered a rate increase across the board for all hospital services. Our new contract offer is broader in scope than what hospital executives requested. It’s the right thing to do – and a demonstration that we’re doing our part to support the long-term sustainability of this important facility.
HCMC faces several challenges, some of which are not necessarily isolated to the facility but plague many rural hospitals across the country. A reduction in patient volume is one of those problems shared by the hospital’s CEO in a recent community forum. We’ve seen this firsthand: The number of BlueCare members delivering at HCMC has dropped four years in a row.
We have employees who call Henry County home, and as the only Tennessee-based health insurer, we know how important it is to have access to quality health care in your community. Rest assured that we hear you. We see you. And no matter what lies ahead for HCMC, we are here to help you get the care you need every day, and especially amid your most important family milestones.