Aetna, Wayne Memorial Hospital Sign Contract

Aetna (NYSE: AET) and Wayne Memorial Hospital announced today that they have reached agreement on a three-year contract that adds the hospital to Aetna’s network in Northeastern Pennsylvania.

With this agreement, members of Aetna commercial and Medicare plans can receive covered benefits, at in-network rates, from Wayne Memorial Hospital, Wayne Woodlands Manor, Wayne Memorial Home Health Hospice, Wayne Memorial Home Health Service, and Wayne Health Services Inc.

Aetna also is pursuing a contract with Wayne Memorial Community Health Centers, and hopes to reach agreement soon.

"Aetna is happy to welcome Wayne Memorial Hospital into its network of contracted providers,” said Robert Kleman, Aetna’s vice president of network operations for Pennsylvania. "We strive to provide broad access to quality hospitals and physicians. Our members in Northeastern Pennsylvania now will have more in-network health care choices at their disposal.”

"Wayne Memorial Hospital is pleased to accept Aetna insurance products from the many individuals, families and employers in our community who have Aetna health insurance coverage,” said G. Richard Garman, executive director of The Wayne Memorial Health Foundation and one of the architects of the agreement. "We are committed to helping improve access to health care services for all who need it, as well as expanding the options for health insurance coverage.”

Aetna provides health benefits to more than 1 million members in Pennsylvania. Its members have access to a network that includes more than 200 hospitals and more than 31,000 primary care and specialist physicians.

About Wayne Memorial Hospital

Wayne Memorial Hospital, a 112-bed acute care hospital in Honesdale, Pa., offers a continuum of services from birthing units to advanced imaging services, both inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation; home health; and hospice. The hospital is the heart of Wayne Memorial Health System, which serves more than 100,000 residents in Wayne and Pike counties in Pennsylvania and the Upper Delaware River region of New York state. In addition to a 121-bed skilled nursing facility, Wayne Woodlands Manor, and an accredited durable medical equipment company, Wayne Health Services, Wayne Memorial Health System boasts a close clinical affiliation with Wayne Memorial Community Health Centers, a federally qualified health center. The health centers operate a network of primary care clinics, a dental health unit and behavioral health services in six locations throughout Wayne and Pike counties.

About Aetna

Aetna is one of the nation's leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 36.3 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional, voluntary and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. For more information, see www.aetna.com.