KSHB 41 reporter Elyse Schoenig covers the cities of Shawnee and Mission. She also focuses on issues surrounding the cost of health care, saving for retirement and personal debt. Share your story idea with Elyse.
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Some patients with one kind of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas insurance plan discovered their providers are no longer in network at the KU Health System.
In emailed statements, a Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas spokesperson said, "BCBSKS remains disappointed in the decision of the University of Kansas Health System to terminate their BCBSKS contract for EPO plans only in Johnson and Wyandotte counties effective Jan. 1, 2026. These facilities remain in network for all other BCBSKS commercial plans."
A KU Health System spokesperson said, "Despite significant efforts, The University of Kansas Health System was unable to reach a reasonable agreement with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas for our hospital to remain in network for its Blue Choice Solutions plan. This is extremely disappointing for us, but most importantly, for our patients. We are working directly with impacted patients to transition their care as seamlessly as possible. For patients in active treatment, we are working with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas to continue this care. This is never an easy process. If patients with scheduled appointments have questions, we encourage them to reach out to their care team."
Amanda Storm is a patient who reached out to KSHB 41. She said her health care is caught in the crossfire after learning her insurance plan was no longer in network with her preferred providers. She said she learned this after open enrollment ended.
"It is one of the few plans that, as a self-employed person — both my husband and I, myself, are self-employed — that we could purchase, and it included the University of Kansas Health System," Storm said.
She said they pay $3,000 a month for their plan called Blue Choice Solutions, which previously covered their KU Health System doctors.
"We don't really know what our options are because it's unclear to us as individual consumers of the health system if we can enroll in a different plan, because open enrollment had ended," Storm said.
Barbara Zabawa, an associate professor of law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, said these disputes have become increasingly common.
"There's been a number of cases over the last 15 or so years of insurers and health care providers bumping heads on terms of their agreement," Zabawa said.
She said consumers in Kansas do have their own level of advocacy they can consider.
"The Insurance Commissioner's Office is there for consumer protection, and this would be a good opportunity for them to evaluate if there were some missteps in this process," Zabawa said.
Zabawa also said consumers deserve thorough communication with these kinds of changes.
"The consumer is kind of a third party, right? They are the ones that have to bear the decisions, the consequences of the decisions made at the negotiating table, and they're not at the negotiating table," Zabawa said.
For Storm, the situation has created significant stress and uncertainty.
"When you're stuck between them, it is a sense of being alone in the world and not being supported. And it is a sense of grief," Storm said.
Storm still has lots of questions about her options.
"I am not surprised that we have fallen through the health care crack," Storm said. "They're both businesses, and they're big businesses, and the consumer, the patient, is caught in between."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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