by Mitti Hicks
December 20, 2024
Memorial Sloan Kettering says more than 22,000 could be impacted by 2025.
Tens of thousands of Memorial Sloan Kettering (MSK) cancer patients could lose access to life-saving treatments in 2025 because of an ongoing contract fight with Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and the hospital.
MSK leadership recently said it was “not confident” that a deal would be reached between the two sides before the contract expires on Jan. 1, 2025, according to the New York Post. If the deals fall through, some out-of-network patients will be forced to stop their treatments or potentially face high medical costs.
MSK is one of the world’s most respected comprehensive centers devoted exclusively to cancer. For over thirty years, it has been recognized as one of the top two cancer hospitals in the country.
Who’s Impacted?
MSK says that more than 22,000 active patients, like Carrie Regan, could be impacted in 2025.
“I feel like once you have cancer (…) you live scan to scan,” Regan, 41, told the outlet. She also said the thought of losing care at MSK is “crippling.”
Regan was reportedly diagnosed with ovarian cancer in August 2023 and has been cancer-free since March 2024. Like most cancer patients, she still goes in for monthly checkups but has been growing frustrated with a lack of answers from Anthem.
In 2023 alone, the hospital treated more than 71,000 patients. However, patients currently in the middle of treatment will continue to pay in-network costs until March 1, thanks to New York laws. That leaves time for both sides to strike a deal, but it’s cutting it close.
“While we are working overtime to negotiate in good faith with Anthem to resolve this dispute for the patients who rely on us, Anthem does not appear interested in fair resolution,” hospital CFO Mike Harrington told The Post.
Meanwhile, Anthem is painting a different picture of the negotiations. A spokesperson told the outlet that it was “confident” it would reach an agreement with MSK as both parties “continue to negotiate in good faith.”
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