32bJ Health Fund, Northwell Direct announce largest direct health care contract of its kind | Northwell Health
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32BJ Health Fund and Northwell Direct announce largest direct health care contract of its kind in the country, delivering major savings and expanding access to care
December 16th, 2025 Barbara Osborn
From left: Nick Stefanizzi, CEO of Northwell Direct; Manny Pastreich, president of 32BJ SEIU; John D'Angelo, MD, president and CEO of Northwell Health; Howard Rothschild, president and CEO of the Realty Advisory Board on Labor Relations, Inc. Credit: 32BJ
As a result of this groundbreaking collaboration, 32BJ Health Fund expects to spend 20% less in first year, creating national blueprint for reducing health care costs
32BJ Health Fund, the union health fund representing 100,000 building service workers in the New York metro area, and Northwell Direct, a direct-to-employer health care network that partners directly with employers and labor unions to provide health benefits solutions to their employees, today announced a historic deal that will significantly expand access to high-quality care for 32BJ members and their families while delivering dramatic savings to patients, unions and employers. This agreement is the largest direct health care contract of its kind in the country.<br>Under the terms of the deal, the 170,000 participants in the 32BJ Health Fund will have access to the full spectrum of health care services available through the Northwell Direct network. As a result of the lower prices available through Northwell Direct, 32BJ Health Fund estimates it will save $46M in the first year of the agreement or 20%.
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A layer of third-party administration will be removed because Northwell Direct and 32BJ Health Fund will manage the administrative relationship directly. 32BJ Health Fund will return Northwell Health to Preferred status. The result will be more options at lower costs for 32BJ members and their families. A look at this deal by the numbers:<br>Reduced member inpatient copays from $1,000 to $100 and outpatient from $250 to $75 at providers in the Northwell Direct network. <br>Expanded access to over 12,000 Northwell providers and reduced copays for them, from $40 to $0. <br>Members will save approximately $5M in out-of-pocket copays.<br>Annual increases in the fee schedules are capped at no more than 5% annually.
This story is featured in the Growth section of Northwell's 2025 Annual Report.
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Members will continue to have access to their existing Anthem network, but are also encouraged to explore the low-cost copay options now available through Northwell Direct's network. Northwell Direct’s provider network is provided through Northwell Direct Administrative Services Organization, Inc.
Establishing a national model for health care affordability<br>"It’s impossible to overstate how much of a win this collaboration is for our hard-working families, our Health Fund, and our employers who contribute to it," Manny Pastreich, president, 32BJ SEIU, said. "We are dramatically lowering hospital and out-of-pocket costs for our members, expanding their access to high-quality care and proving it's possible to tackle the health care cost crisis through innovation, rather than simply passing the burden onto workers. I’m incredibly proud of our union’s role in advocating for these reforms to our health care system. This did not happen by accident. The agreement between the Health Fund and Northwell Direct is the first of its size, and I trust it will serve as a national model."<br>"This is a new chapter for how health care is delivered and paid for in America," John D'Angelo, MD, president and CEO, Northwell Health, said. "By bringing together the true payors of health care costs with the providers who deliver care, we are creating a more transparent, efficient and patient-centric system. We are committed to tackling health care affordability, and this historic partnership between Northwell Direct and the 32BJ Health Fund demonstrates that a true solution is possible at scale, providing access benefits and lowering costs for thousands of families in the communities we serve."
Additionally, the organizations will collaborate to find ways to make it easier for members to navigate their health care. This includes working together to make it simpler to schedule appointments and improving coordination for major medical events like having a...