Assemblywoman Valerie Vainieri Huttle (D-Bergen) on Tuesday responded to claims that Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield deliberately schemed to keep Catholic hospitals in New Jersey from becoming part of a new health alliance to offer lower-cost services to customers.
“I sincerely hope that Horizon did not intentionally keep Catholic hospitals out of its tier 1 plan. If Horizon wants to quickly dispel this claim it should be transparent with the criteria it used to select the elite group of hospitals that would participate in this new alliance.
“As a Catholic and as Chair of the Assembly Human Services Committee, I have seen firsthand the commitment Catholic hospitals have to the communities they serve, such as Holy Name Medical Center in my district.
“Often, Catholic hospitals serve poorer communities. These are the residents who are most in need of less costly but still high quality healthcare. If these claims are true, they are unacceptable.”