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Shands and University of Florida HealthCare Network enter into agreement with Great-West Healthcare
New contract adds eight hospitals and more than 1,500 physicians
to Great-West Healthcare Florida network
GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo., July 2007 – Great-West Healthcare, a national employee benefits provider, today announced it has finalized a contract with Shands and University of Florida HealthCare Network to provide in-network health care services to Great-West Healthcare’s members effective Aug. 1, 2007. The agreement covers Great-West Healthcare’s Open Access, Point-of-Service and Preferred Provider Organization health plans.
Under the agreement, Great-West Healthcare members will have in-network access to all inpatient, outpatient and emergency services available through the Shands system, which includes eight hospitals and more than 80 outpatient primary and specialty care practices across north Florida. Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
“We are pleased that Great-West Healthcare members now have in-network access to all Shands hospitals and its affiliated University of Florida physicians in Florida,” said Doug Chaet, vice president of managed care and network development, Shands HealthCare. “We look forward to working with Great-West Healthcare to continue our mission to serve the health care needs of the community.”
“We appreciate Shands’ efforts to work with us to bring additional access to in-network providers for our Florida members,” said Steve White, Southeast region president, Great-West Healthcare. “Our goal is to offer a broad network of quality doctors and hospitals while preserving our members’ access to affordable health care.”
The Shands HealthCare system comprises:
- Two academic medical centers:
• Shands at the University of Florida (Gainesville)
• Shands Jacksonville (Jacksonville)
- Four community hospitals:
• Shands AGH (Gainesville)
• Shands Live Oak (Live Oak)
• Shands Lake Shore (Lake City)
• Shands Starke (Starke)
- Two specialty hospitals:
• Shands Rehab Hospital (Gainesville)
• Shands Vista Behavioral Health (Gainesville)
- Outpatient programs
• Shands HomeCare and Shands Jacksonville Home Health (north central and northeast Florida)
• Shands Rehab Centers (Gainesville)
About Great-West Healthcare®
Great-West Healthcare, a division of Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company, is a national employee benefits provider with expertise in self-funding and health care management solutions. Nationally, the division operates a health care network that includes more than 4,275 hospitals and 578,000 providers and provides health care services to 2.2 million people. Visit www.greatwesthealthcare.com for more information.
Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Company, headquartered in metro-Denver, serves its customers through a full range of health care plans, life and disability insurance, annuities, and retirement savings products and services. It is an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Great-West Lifeco Inc. and a member of the Power Financial Corporation group of companies.
About Shands HealthCare
Shands HealthCare is a private, not-for-profit organization affiliated with the University of Florida. The Shands system includes eight hospitals and more than 80 outpatient primary and specialty care practices across north Florida. More than 1,500 University of Florida faculty and community physicians representing more than 100 medical specialties work with highly skilled Shands nurses and support staff to provide quality, compassionate care to our patients. For more information on Shands HealthCare, contact Kim Jamerson at (352) 265-0373.