M ay 2 6 , 2 0 2 2 | A p p e n M e d i a . c o m | A n A p p e n M e d i a G r o u p P u b l i c a t i o n | 5 0 ¢ | Vo l u m e 2 5 , N o . 2 1
Anthem, Northside take coverage issue to Supreme Court By REBECCA GRAPEVINE Capitol Beat
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At its May 19 meeting at the Forsyth County Administration building, County Commissioners agreed to swap just over two dozen acres in a deal that may expand the footprint of the Big Creek Greenway just west of Keithwood Drive. The agreement with MKW Capital advances plans for a subdivision east of Bethelview Road.
County swaps land for greenway Deal will add 30 more acres near Big Creek By JAKE DRUKMAN jake@appenmedia.com FORSYTH COUNTY, Ga. — The For syth County Board of Commissioners finalized a land swap agreement May 19 that will allow a new subdivision
off Bethelview Road. The county will cede just over 26 acres of land east of Bethelview Road and north of Silver Leaf Drive to equity firm MKW Capital. In return, the county will receive a nearby tract of nearly 30 acres just across Big Creek and west of Keithwood Drive. The land the county will receive includes a portion of the Big Creek Greenway. County Commissioner Todd Levent said the land could be used to expand and improve the greenway,
although funding for the project may not be available for years. The land the county is ceding to the firm will be used for a new 92home single-family subdivision on the parcel that is part of about 100 acres set aside for the development. County Attorney Ken Jarrard noted that both tracts were appraised, and the land the county will receive is worth about $63,000 more than the land it will give up. He said
See SUBDIVISION, Page 21
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ATLANTA — Two health-care players embroiled in a legal controversy that could affect hundreds of thousands of Georgians’ health care faced off in state Supreme Court May 17. Lawyers for Anthem (Blue Cross Blue Shield), a large health insurance company, and Northside, an Atlanta hospital system, debated the meaning of “public health emergency” and jurisdiction over legal appeals. The dispute is rooted in Anthem’s decision to terminate Northside from its insurance network in May 2021. Anthem claims it dropped the Atlanta hospital system because Northside “billed exorbitant sums [to Anthem] over the years” and was “an extreme outlier in costs among Anthem’s contracted providers,” according to a brief filed with the court. The insurer and hospital tried to negotiate a solution but were unable to come to an agreement. Northside then filed suit against
See CONTROVERSY, Page 7