Christus says it will cover cancer clinic patients through end of year

By Rick Ruggles rruggles@sfnewmexican.com

May 26, 2022

Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center agreed this week cancer patients may keep seeing their doctors at an independent clinic through 2022.

The hospital told cancer patients in a letter sent Wednesday it will continue to cover their care at New Mexico Cancer Care Associates in Santa Fe until the end of the year, at which point the contract between the two concludes.

It’s the latest development in a monthslong dispute between Christus St. Vincent, which plans to build its own cancer facility, and the independent specialty clinic that has served the hospital for about 11 years.

“This is a great victory for our patients,” said Dr. Kat Chan, an oncologist and the president of practice at New Mexico Cancer Care Associates. “There are multiple other things that we need to work through.”

Christus St. Vincent has said throughout the dispute it wouldn’t leave patients in limbo without care. The hospital said Thursday its letter “provides greater assurances to our patients about our commitment to their ongoing cancer care.”

But the hospital previously has said it would terminate the clinic’s contract early, first on May 27 and then July 15.

The hospital and clinic entered mediation Monday and Tuesday. Chan said additional mediation sessions haven’t been scheduled.

Christus St. Vincent said in a statement Thursday, however, it looked forward to continuing mediation.

Dr. Scott Herbert, an oncologist at the cancer clinic, said the proposed early termination dates for the contract wasted time and caused fear, only to have the hospital “come back and do the right thing after enormous amounts of pressure” from the community.

“I’ll be honest with you,” Herbert said. “I feel like they played chicken with our patients, and then they came to their senses.”

Christus St. Vincent’s letter indicates the hospital will continue to compensate New Mexico Cancer Care Associates until the end of the year, which was the arrangement in the original contract.

The hospital said in the letter: “To ensure confidence in your care, we are committed to continue paying NMCCA’s providers, and the staff that support their efforts, for seeing patients … through the end of the calendar year.

“This also means that we will continue to process all billing, including to your health insurance carrier through this calendar year,” the letter continued. “NMCCA providers can remain covered by the Hospital’s insurance contracts through that period.”

The hospital and clinic offer different views of what has led to their conflict.

The hospital has said the clinic failed to provide full staffing and that the clinic tried to recruit hospital-employed physicians to a new venture for independent doctors.

New Mexico Cancer Care Associates says it wanted to be free of the hospital to pursue independent endeavors, including serving patients at Presbyterian Santa Fe Medical Center. The clinic also said it resented an effort by the hospital to convert its doctors into hospital employees.

The hospital earlier this year announced a plan to build an $80 million cancer facility on its campus on St. Michael’s Drive and offer its own robust cancer services.

The hospital’s letter reads in part: “If you choose to follow your NMCCA provider after December 31, 2022, you will need to check with your insurance plan to verify future coverage. Should you choose to remain with the Hospital’s oncology providers, you won’t experience any changes in your current coverage.”