Thousands lose access to Boston Children's Hospital over insurance rate dispute

Approximately 12,000 people will lose access to Boston Children's Hospital due to a contract dispute between the hospital and Boston Medical Center's insurance affiliate. The hospital and BMC HealthNet Plan, which largely works with low-income populations, had been working to settle a rate contract for the past seven months. Though the groups were close to an agreement that would have lowered rates in the summer, an even lower rate proposal from HealthNet in the fall derailed progress. Without consensus, BMC HealthNet terminated its contract with Children's, leaving thousands of patients without access to their primary care physicians or specialists.