Updated April 23, 2025

We are working hard to renew our relationship with Stony Brook Medicine

UnitedHealthcare is currently negotiating in good faith with Stony Brook Medicine (Stony Brook). Our goal is to reach an agreement that is affordable for the people and employers we serve while ensuring continued, uninterrupted network access to Stony Brook’s hospitals and physicians. 

In the event we are unable to reach an agreement, Stony Brook’s hospitals and providers in New York will be out of network for people enrolled in the following plans, effective June 1, 2025:

  • Employer-sponsored and individual commercial plans
  • Oxford commercial plans
  • UnitedHealthcare Community Plans in New York (Medicaid)
  • Medicare Advantage plans, including Group Retiree and Dual Special Needs Plans (DSNP)
    • Stony Brook University Hospital does not currently participate in our Medicare Advantage network 

In the event Stony Brook leaves our network, members enrolled in the following plans will have continued network access to all of Stony Brook’s hospitals through July 31, 2025, in accordance with New York cooling off requirements:

  • UnitedHealthcare fully insured commercial plans
  • Oxford fully insured commercial plans
  • Medicaid plans
  • Compass/ IEX (Individual Exchange) plans

Please note cooling off only applies to Stony Brook’s hospitals and is only applicable for commercial and Medicaid managed care plans.

We are fully committed to engaging in productive, good-faith discussions and urge Stony Brook to work with us to reach an agreement that is affordable for New Yorkers and employers

Our top priority is to reach an agreement and ensure the people we serve in the Long Island region have continued, uninterrupted network access to affordable health care at Stony Brook’s hospitals and physicians.

We will remain at the negotiating table with Stony Brook for as long as it takes to reach an agreement. We hope Stony Brook shares our commitment and works with us on solutions that are affordable for New York consumers and employers

We are proposing meaningful rate increases that will ensure Stony Brook’s hospitals and physicians continue to be compensated at market-competitive rates

We have a responsibility to provide the people we serve with access to quality health care while also helping to contain rapidly rising health care costs.

Maintaining fair and competitive agreements with the hospitals and providers in our network is critical to our ability to meet this commitment for consumers and employers.

That’s why we continue to compromise and have proposed meaningful rate increases that ensure Stony Brook continues to be reimbursed at market-competitive rates while also balancing affordability for the people and employers we serve.

We have created the following FAQs to ensure you and your family have the information needed regarding next steps as well as details to help meet your health care needs

FAQs

We are actively meeting with Stony Brook Medicine (Stony Brook) with the goal of renewing our long-standing relationship so that the members we serve have continued access to Stony Brook’s hospitals and physicians. We want to keep Stony Brook in our network and are committed to engaging in productive negotiation.

In the event we are unable to reach an agreement, Stony Brook’s hospitals and providers in New York will be out of network for people enrolled in the following plans, effective June 1, 2025:

  • Employer-sponsored and individual commercial plans
  • Oxford commercial plans
  • UnitedHealthcare Community Plans in New York (Medicaid)
  • Medicare Advantage plans, including Group Retiree and Dual Special Needs Plans (DSNP)
    • Stony Brook University Hospital does not currently participate in our Medicare Advantage network

In the event Stony Brook leaves our network, members enrolled in the following plans will have continued network access to all of Stony Brook’s hospitals through July 31, 2025, in accordance with New York cooling off requirements:

  • UnitedHealthcare fully insured commercial plans
  • Oxford fully insured commercial plans
  • Medicaid plans
  • Compass/ IEX (Individual Exchange) plans

Please note cooling off only applies to Stony Brook’s hospitals and is only applicable for commercial and Medicaid managed care plans.

No. Cooling off only applies for people enrolled in fully insured commercial plans and Medicaid managed care plans. In the event our contract with Stony Brook ends on June 1, any non-emergent services received at a Stony Brook hospital, facility or physician would be considered out of network for people enrolled in Medicare Advantage or DSNP plans, unless a member was approved for continuity of care.

If we are unable to reach an agreement, the following hospitals will be out of network on June 1, 2025:

  • Stony Brook Southampton Hospital
  • Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital
  • Stony Brook University Hospital
    • Stony Brook University Hospital is currently non par for Medicare Advantage benefit plans

This negotiation impacts the following benefit plans:

  • Employer-sponsored and individual commercial plans
  • Oxford commercial plans
  • Medicare Advantage plans, including Group Retiree and Dual Special Needs Plans (DSNP)
  • UnitedHealthcare Community Plans in New York (Medicaid)

Members enrolled in our Medicare Advantage PPO plans may receive care from an out-of-network provider, if the provider is a Medicare participating provider which accepts the plan.

If members have a Group Retiree PPO plan, the member’s share of the cost is typically the same as if the provider was part of the network.

UnitedHealthcare Group Retiree members are encouraged to speak with the provider to confirm they will provide care, regardless of their network status.

For support finding in-network physicians, members can call the customer care number on their health plan ID card or visit their plan’s website:

Yes. We are negotiating with Stony Brook in good faith and are hopeful we will reach an agreement at fair, market-competitive rates that will ensure the people we serve can continue to afford care at the health system’s hospital and providers.

We will remain at the negotiating table with Stony Brook for as long as it takes to reach an agreement that ensures continued access to quality, affordable care.

We understand that network changes can be difficult for our members. Our priority is to ensure our members have access to the care they need through a robust network of hospitals and physicians.

If we are unable to renew our agreement with Stony Brook, the people we serve will continue to have access to in-network care from a broad network of providers and hospitals across the Long Island region, including:

  • Good Samaritan Hospital Medical Center
  • Huntington Hospital Association
  • John T Mather Memorial Hospital
  • North Shore University Hospital - Syosset
  • NYU Langone Hospital- Suffolk (formerly known as Long Island Community Hospital)
  • Peconic Bay Medical Center
  • South Shore University Hospital
  • St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center
  • St. Charles Hospital

For support finding in-network physicians, members can call the customer care number on their health plan ID card or visit their plan’s website:

In the event of an emergency, UnitedHealthcare members should go to the nearest hospital. Emergency care will be covered at the in-network benefit level, regardless of whether the hospital participates in our network.

UnitedHealthcare members who are in the middle of treatment at a Stony Brook hospital or with a Stony Brook physician may qualify for continuity of care, which provides continued in-network benefits for a specified period of time after a hospital or physician leaves our network. Some examples of patients who may qualify include, but are not limited to:

  • Women who are pregnant
  • Patients with newly diagnosed or relapsed cancer, or those currently in active cancer treatment

Members who have questions about continuity of care should call the number on their health plan ID card.

For support finding in-network physicians, members can call the customer care number on their health plan ID card or visit their plan’s website: