The region’s two top providers of health care insurance made the right choice this week in signing a 10-year contract that begins this weekend when their consent order expires.

The agreement should bring peace of mind to all to the anxious many about the future of their health care needs.

Under the new contract, all UPMC medical facilities will be available to patients covered by Highmark insurance.

Based on a description by Attorney General Josh Shapiro, the agreement also appears to resolve a major concern for some Highmark customers, whose insurance will be accepted at UPMC hospitals without such issues as mandatory prepayment plans.

Last week, a judge ruled that the consent decree between the health care conglomerates could not be extended through litigation past its June 30 expiration date.

An expiration without a continuation agreement would have led to significantly higher costs for many Highmark customers seeking care at UPMC’s facilities. It likely would have resulted in frustrating, time consuming obstacles for people seeking important health services.

So, the agreement reached Monday could not have come at a better time.

Has the long-standing feud between UPMC and Highmark finally ended? Let’s hope so. The length of the contract is a good sign.

“This is double what normally happens in these things,” Gov. Tom Wolf said of the agreement. “It’s normally five years.”

We still don’t know all the details of the agreement. While it will likely provide relief for those who would have faced difficult situations had it not been reached, the fact remains that this scenario could play out again in a decade.

Hopefully, the two health care providers will peacefully coexist for the next 10 years, and that the next negotiation won’t be acrimonious.

At this point, we’re not sure who to congratulate on this deal being reached. Wolf claimed that he didn’t think it would have come together without Shapiro’s intervention. If this is the case, then the attorney general deserves some credit.

And while UPMC was accused of utilizing hardball tactics to force Highmark members to switch insurers, both health care providers should be commended for reaching an agreement. We agree with newly-elected state Rep. Marci Mustello that the deal is “great news for families, seniors and veterans in our region who can now focus on their health, instead of worrying about their health care provider.”

Navigating the health care system can be anxiety-inducing, and receiving care in a timely manner can be life saving. This new agreement should provide sighs of relief for people in Butler County and beyond.