East End hospitals strike new deal with Empire Blue Cross

The three East End Hospitals and the Empire Blue Cross insurance company have announced an agreement that puts the health care facilities back into the Blue Cross network.

The hospitals — Eastern Long Island Hospital, Peconic Bay Medical Center and Southampton Hospital — announced the deal on their websites Saturday. They fell out of the network on March 31 when negotiations with Empire Blue Cross failed to replace the reimbursement agreement that expired that day.

The immediate impact for many Blue Cross customers was that the cost of elective surgery, such as for a joint replacement, would in most cases come in at the higher out-of-network rate.

The hospitals and the insurance company said additional details would be released at a later time.