POCATELLO — With less than 30 days until Portneuf Medical Center’s contract with Regence BlueShield of Idaho expires, the Pocatello hospital is sharpening its public case against the insurer.

PMC on Monday issued a news release stating Regence denies 75.9 percent of claims the hospital says it appropriately submits and that Regence’s parent company owes the health system more than $30 million in unpaid claims.

Regence fired back with its own statement Tuesday, accusing Ardent Health — PMC’s Tennessee-based parent company — and its California-based consultant of leveling misleading claims in an effort to gain negotiating leverage and suggesting the dispute is less about patient care than protecting profit margins.

“Ardent and its consultant have leveled misleading claims against Regence in an effort to gain leverage,” Regence said. “Rather than negotiating healthcare prices that truly reflect the cost of care for Regence members, they seem to be negotiating prices to bolster their profit margin.”

Regence has maintained it cannot accept the rate increases being demanded by Ardent executives and that doing so would drive up premiums for local businesses and health plan members. The insurer has also identified alternative in-network hospital and clinic options for members in the event a contract isn’t reached, including Bingham Memorial Hospital in Blackfoot, Mountain View Hospital in Idaho Falls and several Pocatello-area primary care clinics such as Primary Care Specialist.

“Serious discussions among Idaho health care leaders lead to productive outcomes; the use of sensational, inaccurate, out-of-context statistics and allegations does not,” Regence said.

If no deal is reached before June 15, thousands of Southeast Idaho residents who carry Regence insurance could lose in-network access to PMC and its affiliated providers, likely resulting in significantly higher out-of-pocket costs for most non-emergency care.

The new figures add detail to a dispute that has been building publicly since late April. PMC says Regence’s Portland, Oregon-based parent company, Cambia Health Solutions, is also proposing contract terms that would under-reimburse PMC by more than $60 million, and that the health system is already paid significantly less than what Regence pays other Idaho health systems.

Despite those gaps, PMC said it has put forward a modest, single-digit rate increase as part of a longer-term agreement designed to provide stability for patients and employers — a characterization that stands in contrast to what Regence and state officials have previously described. The Idaho Office of Group Insurance said earlier this month that Ardent had initially sought a 73 percent increase over seven years and most recently proposed a 41.6 percent increase over five years — figures Regence described as more than double the rate of inflation.

PMC’s statement did not address those figures directly. Instead, it focused on what it called disruptive billing practices by Regence that it says are harming patients and driving up costs: claim denials, down coding and repeated reprocessing requirements that delay care and create unnecessary administrative burdens.

“These practices directly impact Portneuf’s ability to sustain local access to care,” PMC said.

Regence, founded by Idaho physicians 80 years ago, describes itself as a not-for-profit mutual health insurer. It says more than 16,300 Idaho providers and nearly 540 clinics, doctor’s offices, hospitals and care facilities are in its network and that it invests 87 cents of every premium dollar directly into members’ health care.

“As an Idaho not-for-profit mutual health insurer, our member/owners expect us to be careful stewards of their healthcare dollars,” Regence said. “After all, those dollars must stretch far enough to cover not only needed care, but also food, housing, transportation and other necessities.”

PMC pointed to its role serving seniors, Medicaid beneficiaries and other vulnerable populations regardless of their ability to pay, saying fair and timely reimbursement is essential to maintaining the staffing, technology and facilities needed to serve the region.

Federal law requires emergency services to be covered at in-network rates regardless of contract status, and patients who are pregnant or undergoing active treatment for serious conditions may qualify for continuity of care protections under the No Surprises Act.

Both sides say they continue to negotiate in good faith. PMC is directing Regence members to portneuf.org/network-update for information on coverage options and continuity of care resources. Regence members with questions can call the number on the back of their member ID card or visit regence.com.