Rio Hospitals Vote to Drop Unimed Ferj With Care Suspension in 30 Days

Overview

• Aherj, which represents 107 hospitals and clinics, approved descredenciamento from Unimed Ferj with service suspensions to begin roughly 30 days after notifications to authorities.
• The association said it will ask the Rio state prosecutor’s office and the health regulator ANS to intervene or pursue liquidation of the cooperative with transfer of its enrollee portfolio.
• Hospitals estimate unpaid bills exceed R$2 billion, a total Unimed Ferj denies, as providers report they no longer have resources to maintain services.
• In November, ANS arranged management of about 234,000 Ferj users by Unimed do Brasil under a deal allocating 90% of premiums to provider payments and 10% to Ferj for debts.
• Providers report ongoing gaps in payment and communication despite the arrangement, with some care restored only by court orders, while Unimed Ferj says it still contracts with about 40 facilities and rejects the debt figure.