Editor’s Note: On Thursday, Dec. 5, following The Lever’s initial reporting, an Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield representative notified our reporting team that it would no longer be pursuing its new anesthesia policy. The statement came after Connecticut’s State Comptroller announced that Anthem’s policy would not take effect in Connecticut.
One of the country’s largest health insurance companies says it will no longer automatically pay for patients’ anesthesia if a medical procedure takes longer than a predetermined time limit, regardless of complications or other factors that impact operation time.
The new policy published last month by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield means patients will not know whether they’re going to be stuck with the massive bill until they wake up from surgery. The policy change will affect more than eight million people covered by Anthem’s commercial and Medicaid insurance plans in Connecticut, New York, and Missouri.
