Hopkins may leave CareFirst network, leaving patients in the lurch

Johns Hopkins has warned nearly 300,000 patients that their doctors, nurses and other health care providers may no longer accept CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield health insurance as soon as Dec. 5, jeopardizing patients’ access to care. Hopkins and CareFirst are at an impasse over rates the insurance company pays for care at Hopkins, a major provider of primary, specialized and outpatient surgical services in the region. CareFirst officials accused Hopkins of putting “the people we collectively serve” in the middle of contract negotiations that began in June, an allegation denied by Kevin W. Sowers, president of the Johns Hopkins Health System and executive vice president of Johns Hopkins Medicine.