Local Access

Protecting Exceptional Local Health Care Options

UPDATED 11/20/25: NEGOTIATIONS ARE ONGOING. Although Blue Cross Blue Shield Minnesota (BCBSMN) members received a letter suggesting that our in-network coverage with BCBSMN will end at the end of the year, we want to assure you that negotiations are ongoing. Aspirus remains actively engaged in good-faith discussions with BCBSMN for a fair, market-competitive agreement.

Our Goal

We are working hard on your behalf for what is fair: While negotiations have not yet achieved a sustainable agreement, our team continues to bargain in good faith on behalf of our patients and community. Our goal is to reach a fair agreement that allows you to continue receiving high-quality care from your trusted Aspirus providers.

You can review the October letter we sent to our patients with BCBSMN insurance for more details to help you make informed decisions about your healthcare coverage.

What Can You Do?

Your voice makes a difference. Here are a few ways you can help protect your affordable, in-network access to Aspirus care:

1. Review your insurance options for 2026.
Explore health plans that include Aspirus and other local providers in-network. Visit our Accepted Insurance page for a full list of plans offering in-network access to Aspirus into 2026.

2. Contact Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota (BCBSMN).
Call the number on the back of your insurance card and ask BCBSMN to keep Aspirus in-network into 2026. Hearing directly from members helps them understand how important access to local, trusted care is to our communities.

3. Talk with your employer’s benefits manager.
If you receive insurance through your job, let your benefits manager know that continued in-network access to Aspirus matters to you. Ask them to reach out to BCBSMN directly to advocate on behalf of employees.

What’s Happening?

As a leading, local non-profit provider, Aspirus is important to patients and community members throughout Northeastern Minnesota. Each year, we serve hundreds of thousands of patients and their families, who seek care at Aspirus St. Luke’s, Aspirus Lake View, Northern Lakes Surgery Center and affiliated Aspirus clinics.

To continue providing the care our communities rely on, we need fair reimbursement from the insurers who cover our patients. That is why Aspirus is currently negotiating a new agreement with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota (BCBSMN). We are working on an agreement that better reflects the cost of delivering excellent care close to home.

Our current agreement with BCBSMN remains in effect through December 31, 2025. During this time, nothing changes for our patients. We remain optimistic that we will reach a fair agreement that protects your access to the Aspirus providers and services you know and trust.

Why This Matters?

At Aspirus, our top priority is ensuring you have access to high-quality, compassionate care close to home. Like many health care organizations, we are facing rising costs, workforce challenges, and reductions in Medicaid funding. Unfortunately, our current agreement with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota (BCBSMN) no longer covers the full cost of the care our providers deliver.

We’re currently in active negotiations with BCBSMN to reach a fair agreement that ensures continued access to excellent, compassionate care. Independent data shows that BCBSMN reimburses us at rates that are far lower than other providers in the market, even though our care costs less overall. This is unfair and unsustainable. Unlike BCBSMN, we can’t raise premiums to offset rising costs and workforce challenges. We simply need fair, market-based reimbursement to continue serving our communities.

We are working hard to reach a new agreement that supports fair reimbursement and allows us to continue providing the convenient, excellent care you deserve.

For now, nothing changes - you can continue to see your Aspirus providers as usual. However, if we are unable to reach an agreement, Aspirus facilities would be considered out of network for BCBSMN members after December 31, 2025.

Additionally, if you are a Medicare Advantage BCBSMN member and trying to decide if you should choose another plan during open enrollment, which ends December 7, you should know there is another open enrollment period from January 1-March 31. This gives you the opportunity to choose another plan early next year.

Aspirus remains committed to negotiating in good faith and keeping you informed every step of the way.

Thank you for supporting Aspirus and helping us continue to deliver the high-quality, compassionate care our communities depend on.