Keeping your child’s doctor:changes to Horizon NJ Health

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Effective November 30, 2026, Watchung Pediatrics will go out-of-network with Horizon NJ Health. Going forward we will still be in-network in the Aetna Better Health of New Jersey, which is another NJ FamilyCare plan. Your child may continue seeing us in 2027 with this plan.

The short version

  • To keep seeing us, you can switch your child’s plan to Aetna Better Health.
  • To avoid large call volumes and ensure you’re able to get through to NJ FamilyCare, it may be best to try sooner rather than later during the October 1 – November 15 open enrollment window.
  • Switching plans takes one short call to NJ FamilyCare.
  • When you call NJ FamilyCare, ask them to confirm your child’s current doctor will be assigned as their primary care doctor under the new Aetna Better Health plan. If they’re not able to confirm, you’ll also need to call Aetna Better Health directly.
  • Questions for us? We’ve opened a dedicated hotline for any questions you have about this insurance change. Call us at (908) 889-6100, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Call NJ FamilyCareRead the FAQ

A letter from our founders

October 1st, 2026

Dear Families,

We are writing to inform you of some unfortunate news. Effective November 30, 2026, Watchung Pediatrics will go out-of-network with Horizon NJ Health. We have made and will continue to make best efforts to reach an agreement with Horizon NJ Health by November 30th, but we’ve been unsuccessful so far. We would strongly prefer to remain in-network and continue to serve you; however, we cannot continue under an agreement that doesn’t support the high-quality care we built our practice on.

The good news: we are not leaving Medicaid, and you can remain at our practice with your current pediatrician. We will remain in-network for NJ FamilyCare through Aetna Better Health of New Jersey, which has the same core benefits as Horizon. If you switch to Aetna during Open Enrollment, October 1 through November 15, nothing about your child’s care changes. Same doctor, same nurses, same office.

If you’d like to continue with us, here are your next best steps:

  • Switch to Aetna Better Health between October 1 – November 15. This is the annual Open Enrollment period, and it’s the easiest time of the year for Medicaid families to transition. Call NJ FamilyCare at 1-800-701-0710 with your child’s ID card handy and say, “I want to change my health plan to Aetna Better Health of New Jersey.” Do this for each child in your family. When they ask for a primary care doctor, name your Watchung Pediatrics doctor; if Aetna assigns someone else, call Aetna at 1-855-232-3596 to fix it. This is the best option to guarantee continued access to your doctor going forward.
  • You can keep using your Horizon card through December 31st and bring your new Aetna card to your first visit after your Aetna insurance becomes active.

If you decide to stay with Horizon and we aren’t ultimately able to reach an agreement before the November 30th deadline, we will be out of network for you starting January 1st, 2027. Horizon must continue to cover your children’s visits with us through the end of December, so please keep your appointments. If your child is due for a checkup or vaccines, consider booking it before the end of the year.

Please contact us at 908-889-6100 if you have any questions about this change. We are staffing this phone line exclusively to answer your questions about this notice. If you do decide to transfer your child’s care to another practice, we will work to make it easy: your records are always available through the patient portal at no charge.

We started this practice to take care of families like yours, and many of your children have been with us since they were born. We hope to continue to be their doctors for a long time to come. Thank you for trusting us with your kids.

Warmly,

Andrea Katz, MD

Cofounder, Watchung Pediatrics

Susan Barasch, MD

Cofounder, Watchung Pediatrics

How to switch plans

Step 1: Call NJ FamilyCare at 1-800-701-0710. Spanish is available.

  1. Have your NJ FamilyCare case number (or your name), your child’s date of birth, and your address ready. You don’t need your insurance card.
  2. Say: “My child’s doctor no longer takes Horizon. I want to change my child’s health plan to Aetna Better Health of New Jersey.”
  3. If you have more than one child, change all of them on the same call.

Step 2 (only necessary if NJ FamilyCare can’t change your PCP on record): Call Aetna Better Health at 1-855-232-3596 to choose your child’s doctor.

  1. If NJ FamilyCare is not able to confirm your child’s primary care doctor, you may need to call Aetna directly.
  2. You may need to wait several days after calling NJ FamilyCare to call Aetna Better Health in order for the health plan change to be reflected.
  3. Give the representative at Aetna Better Health the name of your child’s current doctor and ask to keep them as the primary care doctor with Aetna.

Common questions

We haven’t been able to reach an agreement with Horizon for 2027. We want to keep caring for your child, so we’ve set up a hotline to help answer any questions you have about navigating the transition (908-889-6100).
This notice is not related to your NJ FamilyCare eligibility, only your ability to receive care at Watchung Pediatrics as a Horizon NJ Health member.
We estimate that changes will take just 5–10 minutes once you reach a representative with NJ FamilyCare (available to reach at 1-800-701-0710).
Yes. We can see your child with Horizon through December 31, and with Aetna Better Health at any time once you’ve transitioned to their health plan.
Both are NJ FamilyCare plans with the same state benefits. Each plan has its own list of in-network doctors and hospitals. Learn more about Aetna Better Health here.
Yes, coverage through Aetna Better Health will give you access to coverage for our nutrition and behavioral health services. We are proud of these services and they are a large differentiator for our practice. Getting covered access to these services traditionally requires long waits and external referrals – we’re proud to continue to conveniently offer these benefits in-house to our families on Aetna Better Health.
Your child would stay on Horizon. Starting January 1, 2027, we won’t be in Horizon’s network, and Horizon will automatically assign your child a different doctor. You may receive communication from Horizon NJ Health within the next month about this automatic re-assignment.
If you were able to confirm your child’s current doctor as their Aetna Better Health primary care doctor, you’re all set. If you weren’t able to do this on your call with NJ FamilyCare, you should call Aetna Better Health at 1-855-232-3596 and ask for your child’s current doctor at Watchung Pediatrics to be assigned as their primary care doctor. If you’ve transitioned enrollment, you can ignore any automated communication from Horizon about automatic PCP re-assignment.
No, it does not cost you anything to transition plans. Premiums and copays of all NJ FamilyCare plans are the same. Your eligibility category is the only factor that will impact your cost, and that doesn’t vary based on insurance carrier.
You may still be able to switch. Call NJ FamilyCare at 1-800-701-0710 and let them know your child’s doctor is no longer in Horizon’s network.
Log in to the Athena Patient portal to access & print your vaccine records and visit summaries.
Check that your doctors and hospital take Aetna Better Health before you switch. You can search at https://www.aetnabetterhealth.com/newjersey/find-provider, or call Aetna Better Health at 1-855-232-3596.
No. Changing plans doesn’t change your eligibility for NJ FamilyCare. For questions about eligibility or renewal, call NJ FamilyCare at 1-800-701-0710.
We would like to stay in Horizon’s network, but we don’t currently have an agreement for 2027. Switching to Aetna Better Health during open enrollment is the best way to make sure your child can keep seeing us.
To file a complaint, you can call them at 1-800-682-9090. Tell them that you are upset that Horizon NJ Health is going out-of-network with Watchung Pediatrics, and request that they come to an agreement so you can keep access to your doctor. You can also file a complaint online at horizonnjhealth.com/forms/grievance. Copy and paste this message into the Additional Information (optional) section:

We would like to continue to see our doctor at Watchung Pediatrics. Please stay in-network with them.

Who to call

Questions for Watchung Pediatrics about this change

Our dedicated hotline

(908) 889-6100

Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Switching your plan, eligibility or renewal

NJ FamilyCare

1-800-701-0710

Choosing your child’s doctor, Aetna Better Health doctors, coverage or your new card

Aetna Better Health of New Jersey

1-855-232-3596

Complaining to Horizon NJ Health

Horizon NJ Health Member Services line

1-800-682-9090