Doctors who provide medical imaging services at Erlanger Health like MRIs and CT scans worry their private practice could struggle to keep up with pediatric radiology needs if it does not reach an agreement with the nation’s largest health insurance company.
Tennessee Interventional and Imaging Associates, Erlanger’s sole radiology provider, has been negotiating with United Healthcare for months over reimbursement rates from the insurer.
“Pediatric radiology volumes have continued to increase across the country, and people are having a hard time keeping up,” Dr. Joseph Oros, a pediatric radiologist at Erlanger, said in an interview. “I assume that if the trend continues and the numbers continue, that we’ll eventually be in a shortage here.”
The private practice, founded in 2013 and owned by its radiologists, has never been out of network with a major insurer, CEO Stephen Johnson said.
(READ MORE: Bradley Medical Center disputes canceled United Health contract)