Participant Role Brief
Health System Executive
"NorthRiver Health"
Your Role
You are the senior executive responsible for payer strategy at NorthRiver Health, a three-hospital system plus affiliated medical group in a competitive metro market.
Context
Your largest commercial contract (28% of commercial volume) with HorizonHealth Plan expires today.
You sent a termination notice last week and plan to go public tomorrow if no deal is reached — announcing disruption for 90,000+ patients.
Rate Situation:
Your rates are well-below market (180% of Medicare vs. regional median 250%), justified by years of underpayment.
You've asked for 340% to catch up.
Your Situation
Operating margin: 1.2%
Losing HorizonHealth revenue would cripple care delivery.
Your board demands a deal today to avoid revenue catastrophe, and your CEO emphasized getting the rate locked in first before tomorrow's announcement.
Your Goals
Secure a rate increase today to end the standoff.
CEO's clear priority is the rate number — you could accept 260% since it's still a win vs. out-of-network disruption.
Your Constraints (Non-Negotiables)
Deal must close before tomorrow's public announcement.
No VBC/downside risk yet — focus on FFS rate fix.
Information Only You Know
You've invested in readmissions reduction and ED efficiency — real VBC upside exists if jointly funded.
Your analytics team flagged a major employer (ABC Manufacturing, 8,000 lives) specifically asking for you in their renewal — joint employer pitches could lock them in.
But revenue stability comes first. You feel tension mounting; you just want this done.
Before You Begin
Think about:
What makes this negotiation personally tense?
Circle 1–2 spots where you feel discomfort/urgency to "just close the deal."
When You're Ready to Start
8 Minutes
Set a timer for exactly 8 minutes
That's all the time you'll have to negotiate.
⚠️ Be Strict With the Deadline
Do not negotiate past 8 minutes. Stop when time is up.
Choose Your Negotiation Style
💬 Chat:Type your messages in the chat interface
🎤 Voice:Click the microphone button in the text-input window to speak your negotiation
The AI negotiator responds to both text and voice — choose what feels natural to you!
Copyright Kevin Greene, Breakthrough Negotiating 2026.
BreakthroughNegotiating.com