PROVIDENCE, R.I., Dec. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island (BCBSRI) and Care New England (CNE) today announced that they have reached a new five-year agreement, which ensures that CNE will remain in the BCBSRI network until 2013.

By Felice J Freyer A contract dispute between Blue Cross and the Care New England hospital group has spilled into the public arena, raising worries about whether Blue Cross subscribers will be able get care at Butler, Women & Infants and Kent hospitals after Dec. 31.

By FELICE J. FREYER; Journal Medical Writer Mark E. Crevier, the Kent Hospital president who faced a vote of no-confidence by doctors while leading the hospital through rocky fiscal times, announced yesterday that he will step down on Oct. 15.

By Felice J. Freyer, The Providence Journal, R.I. Mar. 6--Mark E. Crevier, the Kent Hospital president who faced a vote of no-confidence by doctors while leading the hospital through rocky fiscal times, announced yesterday that he will step down on Oct. 15.

By Felice J. Freyer, The Providence Journal, R.I. Dec. 19--Lifespan and Care New England, the two hospital groups in Rhode Island, have learned that the Federal Trade Commission found no antitrust violations in their plans to merge.