New contract ensures UW Medicine remains in-network for Aetna patients

SEATTLE - UW Medicine and Aetna have reached a new agreement, ensuring that UW Medicine facilities will continue to serve as in-network providers for Aetna-insured patients.

The agreement, announced Thursday, July 3, covers services provided since previous contracts ended on June 1, 2025.

The new contract impacts several UW Medicine locations, including Harborview Medical Center, UW Medical Center – Northwest, UW Medical Center – Montlake, UW Medicine Primary Care and Urgent Care, and physician services at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.

What they're saying:

"We are delighted to have reached a new agreement with Aetna that is fair, sustainable and in the best interests of our patients," said Dr. Tim Dellit, CEO, UW Medicine. "We know how important it is for patients to have in-network access to the doctors and care teams they know and trust, and we need fair reimbursement rates from our commercial payors to keep our hospitals operating and to serve as the primary safety net healthcare system for our state. We appreciate this opportunity to continue working with Aetna to provide high quality healthcare to our patients and community."

Aetna also confirmed the agreement, stating, "We are pleased to announce we’ve reached a multi-year agreement with UW Medicine that brings them back in our health plan networks. The effective date of the new agreement is June 1 and health care services received by Aetna members since that date will be covered at the members’ in-network benefit levels."

The backstory:

The agreement follows a period of negotiations between the two organizations. On June 2, UW Medicine had announced that an agreement had not been reached as of June 1. Prior to that, on May 29, UW Medicine had expressed concerns about reaching a fair and financially feasible agreement, noting that Aetna's reimbursement rates were among the lowest compared to other insurers in the market.

At that time, UW Medicine stated, "Aetna’s contract offer is not fair to our patients or the thousands of public employees at UW Medicine who deserve to be treated fairly. In order to keep our hospitals operating and serve as the primary safety net for our state, we need to be paid fairly for the healthcare that we provide."

What's next:

Patients with questions regarding their coverage can contact UW Medicine at HealthInsContracts@uw.edu.

Aetna said it would send letters to update members who received initial termination notices and encouraged members with questions to call the number on the back of their member ID card.

UW Medicine's contracts with Aetna include:

• Harborview Medical Center
• W Medical Center – Northwest
• UW Medical Center – Montlake
• UW Medicine Primary Care
• Urgent Care and physician services at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center

MORE NEWS FROM FOX 13 SEATTLE

Bryan Kohberger pleads guilty to Idaho murders, avoiding death penalty

Seattle doctor stole meds from infant patients, worked under influence

New evidence links Travis Decker to WA crime scene

Microsoft announces another mass layoff impacting 9,000 workers

Toddler's death investigated as homicide in Mason County

Everything to know about WA laws going into effect July 1

To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.

Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.