Update on Genesis OBGYN Negotiation

Negotiations are a normal course of business. Good faith negotiations are the expected course of business. In healthcare, the best negotiations keep the needs of patients in mind.

This morning, after declining our most recent offer, Genesis OBGYN, located in Pima County, took the unfortunate step of sending a message to their patients that contained a false statement. Our legal counsel has cautioned Genesis OBGYN leaders, and their private equity investors, to refrain from making false statements, and they have been asked to correct what they have published. 

We hold our providers, including the physicians and medical professionals at Genesis, in high esteem and want them to stay in the network. Providers should absolutely be paid fairly and honored and respected for their talent, expertise, and compassion. We remain hopeful that Genesis OBGYN will accept our most recent offer, (the paperwork is in their possession), and pause on further upsetting their patients and our members. 

We know this has caused disruption. It’s the last thing that any patient needs. It’s certainly the last thing that expecting moms and patients in the middle of receiving care need.

For concerned patients who have posted on social media, thank you for making your voices heard. Your perspective is so important and influenced our efforts to raise reimbursement to your beloved physicians. 

We are sorry that despite our best efforts, we were not able to finalize an agreement. We offered extensions multiple times and increased the reimbursement multiple times but were not able to bring it to a close. We carefully track payments statewide to ensure that providers are paid fairly. The reimbursement demand in this case was so much higher than the market. Agreeing to excessive reimbursement makes the cost of care increasingly out of reach. 

It is common for practices to be owned or backed by private equity firms. Unfortunately, some of these businesses focus on delivering a high return to investors, while driving up costs for patients. If Genesis OBGYN would like to stay in our network, they have a proposal in front of them that is more than fair. We would welcome them with open arms.

For those patients who are expecting or in the middle of care, our care management team is coordinating with the Genesis OBGYN to ensure that your current course of care is not interrupted. For patients in need of a new provider, there are practices accepting new patients and we can help direct you to a new office. Please call the number on the back of your card.