Good afternoon,

Some of you may have received notifications from your health insurance regarding the possible termination of the UC Health Systems contract with Blue Shield of CA. I would like to share with you the following message from CalPERS to alert members who might be impacted by this potential change if an agreement has not been reached by June 30, 2025. (Below)  

Alexis Collins
Director of Payroll and Benefits

Message from the CSU Chancellor's Office: 

We want to inform you that the contract between Blue Shield of California and the University of California (UC) Health System has a potential termination date of June 30, 2025. 

The potential termination affects the entire UC Health System, which includes UC Davis, UC Irvine, UCLA, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, and UC San Francisco hospitals as well as associated children's hospitals, facilities, and medical groups.

If there is a contract termination, it would impact Blue Shield of California members enrolled in:

• PERS Gold PPO

• PERS Platinum PPO

• Blue Shield Access+ HMO

There would be no impact to CalPERS members enrolled in the PERS Gold and PERS Platinum Medicare Supplement plans or Blue Shield's Medicare Advantage PPO Plan.

Blue Shield mailed letters to potentially impacted HMO members on May 1, 2025. Members in PERS Gold and PERS Platinum will be sent a letter at a later date. If no new deal is reached, Blue Shield will match members with new primary care physicians to ensure access to care.

It's important to note that contract terminations are not considered a qualifying event for members to change health plans. Members are eligible to change their coverage during Open Enrollment scheduled September 15 through October 10 with coverage effective January 1, 2026.

Negotiations are ongoing. CalPERS remains committed to ensuring members receive timely updates on contract negotiations. The CalPERS policy on potential provider disruptions (PDF) allows the parties to continue to negotiate and work toward resolution, without favoring one side over the other by intervening. CalPERS believes strongly that it is inappropriate for providers and health plans to involve members in contract disputes and has communicated that position during these negotiations.