JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Gov. Phil Bryant is ordering Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Mississippi to reinstate all 10 hospitals that it kicked out of its network.
Bryant acted Tuesday, one day after the insurer said it was reinstating four of Health Management Associates' 10 Mississippi hospitals.
The governor says the order lasts until the Department of Insurance finishes investigating whether Blue Cross' insurance network is adequate without the hospitals. Bryant ordered the department to finish and hold a hearing within 60 days.
Typically, Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney acts without input from Bryant. The governor says he has authority to step in, but Blue Cross has sued in federal court, calling Bryant's intervention unconstitutional.
HMA sued Blue Cross for cutting payments without HMA's agreement. Blue Cross then kicked the hospitals out its network.
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