KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – Cigna and East Tennessee Children’s Hospital are at odds, and the insurance provider is planning on removing the hospital from its network by March 1. Thousands of patients could risk losing in-network coverage if a deal isn’t ironed out.

Cigna told WVLT News in an emailed statement that it was the children’s hospital that threatened to leave the provider’s network, but a hospital representative said it was the other way around, and Cigna had decided to boot the hospital from its coverage.

“We are disheartened by Cigna’s media response,” the hospital representative said. “It is simply not factual. On May 27, 2025, Cigna initiated a termination notice for a non-termed agreement affecting our hospital and affiliated providers.”

Cigna’s statement said treatment from ETCH comes at a higher cost than nearby hospitals, which motivated the move to terminate their deal.

“Unfortunately, ETCH is already significantly more expensive than other local hospitals, and they are threatening to leave our network March 1 unless we agree to their demands for more,” Cigna’s statement said.

ETCH is the only children’s hospital in East Tennessee. Many of the services it provides are specialized, and families can have a hard time finding similar care anywhere else in the region. The hospital representative who spoke with WVLT said ETCH’s costs are comparable with similar children’s hospitals across the country.

“Cigna is making an apples to oranges comparison as we are the only children’s hospital in the region,” ETCH’s statement said. “Our expenses are in-line or less than those of any other free-standing children’s hospitals like us in the country.”

ETCH’s representative said around 27,000 patients in East Tennessee use Cigna. If the hospital and insurance provider can’t come up with a deal by March 1, they stand to lose in-network coverage. It would mark the end of a 30-year partnership and the termination of an agreement ETCH said had been in place for 18 years.

The families of ETCH patients found out about the Cigna issue on Dec. 30 in a letter from the hospital. It means some patients will only have about two months to find specialized care.

That said, both the hospital and insurance provider said they hope to work out a deal that keeps patients covered.

“We remain committed to negotiating in good faith to reach a fair, sustainable agreement before the contract ends on March 1, and we hope that ETCH will do what is right for this community,” Cigna said. It echoed ETCH’s own response.

“Repeated good-faith efforts have been made by us, and we will continue to advocate for our patients and families,” ETCH’s spokesperson said.

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