Hospital CEO says Sierra Health dispute over

Thursday, Feb. 17, 2000 | 11:21 a.m.

A 1 1/2-year-old dispute between Sierra Health Services Inc. and three Las Vegas hospitals may be resolved, a report said today.

Dow Jones News Service reported that Alan Miller, president and chief executive officer of Universal Health Services Inc., which owns Valley, Desert Springs and Summerlin hospitals in Las Vegas, told analysts his company's dispute with Sierra Health Services has been settled and it has resumed doing business with Sierra.

The story caught representatives of Sierra Health Services and the three Las Vegas hospitals, known collectively as the Valley Health System, off guard.

Representatives of the hospitals said administrators were on a conference call with Miller and not available for comment today.

Sierra spokeswoman Jenny DesVaux Oakes said today she had no information about a settlement and the company is still advising members to seek treatment at hospitals other than Valley, Desert Springs and Summerlin, which collectively are licensed for more than 800 hospital beds.

A settlement between Las Vegas-based Sierra Health Services, a managed care company that operates Health Plan of Nevada Inc.; and King of Prussia, Pa.-based Universal, means Sierra Health Plan of Nevada's 200,000 members could eventually be entitled to services at the three hospitals.

The dispute between Sierra and Universal began in September 1998 when Northern Nevada Medical Center in Sparks didn't pay an alleged $1.5 million debt to Sierra. Since the Sparks hospital also is owned by Universal Health Services, Sierra withheld $1.5 million in provider service payments to the Las Vegas hospitals.