Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Hackensack Meridian and Aetna reach deal, letting many NJ patients keep their doctors
By
Caroline Lewis
Published Jun 18, 2024
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
By
Caroline Lewis
Published Jun 18, 2024
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
New Jersey’s largest hospital system, Hackensack Meridian Health, has reached a deal with Aetna two weeks before their contract was set to expire, ending a dispute that threatened to cause widespread disruptions to patient care.
Aetna members will now be able to continue receiving care through the health system at in-network rates, as usual.
Hackensack Meridian had sent letters to patients insured by Aetna earlier this month warning them that if the two parties could not agree to new reimbursement rates by July 1, patients would lose in-network coverage to the health system’s network of 18 hospitals and 7,000 doctors. Some patients would have likely had to find new care teams, while others were weighing paying more out of pocket to keep their doctors.
Representatives for Hackensack Meridian and Aetna issued statements celebrating the multiyear deal on Tuesday, but did not offer details on any price increases that they agreed to.
Amid the contract dispute, Aetna accused Hackensack Meridian of trying to raise its rates too high, while Hackensack Meridian said it needed to cover rising costs related to staffing and inflation.
“We know how important it is for the patients and families who depend on us to have access to in-network care, and we appreciate Aetna’s partnership and shared commitment to do what is in the best interest of the communities we serve,” Hackensack Meridian Health's CEO Robert Garrett said in a statement on Tuesday.
Hackensack Meridian is the latest example in a series of major hospital networks involving patients in their contract negotiations by sending out ominous letters warning that they could lose coverage for their hospitals and doctors. Hackensack Meridian’s letter to patients earlier this month asked them to call Aetna to put pressure on the health insurer.
When asked for comment on the decision to alert patients to the possibility that they would lose their coverage, Hackensack Meridian spokesperson Benjamin Goldstein said, “We have a responsibility to communicate early, quickly and transparently with our patients, who are our first priority and mean the world to us.”
If the deal had gone south, some Aetna members would have lost coverage at Hackensack Meridian right away on July 1, while others would have retained coverage for several months, depending on their plans.
Tagged
new jersey
health
Caroline Lewis
Caroline Lewis is on the health care beat for WNYC and Gothamist. She has covered COVID, a nurses' strike, the overdose crisis and New York’s marijuana legalization effort, and spent a year investigating patients' medical bills. She always wants to hear about how everyday New Yorkers experience the health system. Got a tip? Email [email protected].
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Central Park birders, others remember 63-year-old woman killed in park
People who said they knew her described her as an artist and a familiar presence in the Ramble.
By
Charles Lane
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 7:04 p.m. ET
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
News
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .