An extension is not an agreement, and the difference is about to matter for a large number of Medicare Advantage members in New York. NewYork-Presbyterian and UnitedHealthcare bought themselves another month at the end of July while talks continued. That month expires at the end of August, and the hospital system has published exactly what follows if nothing is signed.
The date the extension actually ends
The hospital system’s patient notice, updated as of July 28, 2026, states that the two sides agreed to extend current in-network coverage through August 31, 2026, for Medicare Advantage members while negotiations continue. That extension replaced an earlier August 1 cutoff UnitedHealthcare had already communicated to members.
If no new agreement is reached by August 31, the notice says, then starting September 1 all NewYork-Presbyterian hospitals and the practices that are part of the NewYork-Presbyterian Medical Groups will be considered out-of-network providers for most UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage members. The list of affected locations is long and includes the Columbia and Weill Cornell campuses, Allen Hospital, Brooklyn Methodist, Lower Manhattan, Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital, Queens, Westchester, Hudson Valley and Gracie Square, along with the four Medical Groups.
Which plans are not swept in
The notice is specific about who is outside this. Changes to Medicare Advantage do not affect AARP Medigap and supplemental policies, and they do not affect Group Retiree PPO plans. Members holding individual policies or group HMO plans may have out-of-network benefits, and to the extent those benefits exist, they may still have some coverage at NewYork-Presbyterian, though at out-of-network cost sharing rather than the in-network terms they have now.
The system also lists the Medicare plans it currently remains in network with — Aetna, Anthem BCBS, Cigna, EmblemHealth, Fidelis, Healthfirst, MVP Health Care and Wellcare — with the caveat that not every plan is accepted at every location or affiliated practice.
What out-of-network actually costs on a Medicare Advantage plan
The phrase “out-of-network” carries very different consequences depending on the plan type, and the notice’s careful wording reflects that. On a Medicare Advantage HMO, out-of-network care outside emergencies is generally not covered at all, which means the full billed charge falls on the patient. On a PPO or a plan with out-of-network benefits, the care is covered but at a higher coinsurance rate and against a separate, higher out-of-pocket maximum…