Paige Minemyer writes in FierceHealthcare about how  Walmart’s purchase of Humana, the big health insurer, could hurt hospitals.

Among her comments:

“{A} wrinkle in the potential Walmart-Humana deal that could worry providers is how Walmart currently operates its employee benefits, according to the WSJ. It has increasingly formed direct contacts with specific hospitals.

“This practice, combined with Humana’s infrastructure, could lead the combined entity to build employer health plans with narrow networks that leave many hospitals out in the cold. Geisinger Health System, for example, currently contracts with Walmart and is paid notably lower rates—but it attracts potential patients it might not otherwise, according to {a Wall Street Journal} article.”

To read her article, please hit this link.