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WHEREAS, Highmark and UPMC have been engaged in a long standing legal battle over the in-network coverage of senior citizens who subscribe to Highmark Medicare Advantage plans, and;
WHEREAS, in 2014 Governor Tom Wolf and Attorney General Kathleen Kane negotiated a consent decree between the two organizations that stated an inclusion of vulnerable populations, including the elderly, disabled, children and the poor, to be included until 2019, and;
WHEREAS, Senior citizens are a particularly vulnerable population with a greater need for continuity of care, and who have a harder time dealing with the stresses of an uncertain future, and have a much tougher time navigating the intricacies of complex coverage agreements and disagreements, and;
WHEREAS, UPMC ultimately tried to cancel its in-network contract with Highmark's Medicare Advantage plan, resulting in a Pennsylvania Supreme Court battle, and;
WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled in favor of Highmark, and as a result 182,000 seniors do not have to choose between their trusted doctors, with whom they often have long standing relationships, and their healthcare provider, and;
WHEREAS, The Pennsylvania Health Access Network (PHAN) and the thousands of seniors who pushed UPMC to keep their commitments made to the senior citizens of Pittsburgh and the region by pressuring them to continue service for the 182,000 Highmark Medicare Advantage subscribers at UPMC facilities at in-network rates, and;
WHEREAS, We should be able to count on the foundational charitable institutions of our city, such as UPMC, to maintain their commitment to care for such vulnerable populations and keep to those commitment in following their charitable missions, we acknowledge that the court case is, while a huge victory for seniors, still a temporary resolution to the larger problem which seniors/community members/PHAN will continue to work to solve, and;
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NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the Council o...
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