Georgia Blue Cross signs with Piedmont

Georgia’s largest health insurer and one of its largest hospital groups have signed a peace treaty.

Piedmont Healthcare said Monday that it completed an agreement Fridaywith Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia.

The agreement means people insured by Anthem Blue Cross can see Piedmont physicians and use services at Piedmont hospitals without paying extra out-ofnetwork charges.

Top managers from both sides met with Gov. Nathan Deal last week and announced a handshake agreement. The existing contract expired March 31, but now has been extended until the end of May when the new deal will begin. It runs into 2021.

Indiana-based Anthem had dropped in-network coverage April 1. But the deal is retroactive, meaning Piedmont visits and services since then will be covered at in-network rates. home ownership. Even as the overall economy has improved, there has been a 7.2 percent decline in listing from a year ago to just 1.67 million homes. The decline in listings could bottom out later this year because there has been a recent uptick in people listing homes that are then quickly purchased. But rising mortgage rates are also making it less likely homeowners will choose to sell in order to buy another property at a higher interest rate.

Nor have gains in new construction been enough to make up for the decline in inventories.

“Demand is outstripping supply, and builders have been constrained in their efforts to add new homes by tight labor, zoning restrictions, and most recently a run-up in materials costs,” said Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Amherst Pierpont Securities.

Homes stayed on the market for 30 days in March, down from 34 days a year ago in a sign that the lack of inventory is prompting buyers to sign contracts quickly.