Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield customers will be covered at Yale New Haven Health facilities such as Lawrence + Memorial Hospital through 2020 after the two companies announced Monday they had reached an agreement on a new contract.

People who buy Anthem insurance will be continue to be covered when they seek treatment at all Yale New Haven Health hospitals, which include L+M, Yale New Haven, Bridgeport, Greenwich and Westerly hospitals, and their affiliated physicians and clinics.

The announcement of the deal comes 10 months before the current agreement is scheduled to expire, Yale New Haven Health chief financial officer Vincent Tammaro said in a statement Monday.

"We are very pleased to have reached this agreement which ensures consumers can continue to have access to high quality, affordable care at Yale New Haven Health facilities. We value the relationship we have with Yale New Haven and their care providers and we look forward to continuing to work together to create a better health care experience for the consumers we serve," said Jill Hummel, president, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield.

The current agreement was scheduled to expire in October. Neither company disclosed details of the new contract.

The announcement of Anthem's deal with Yale New Haven Health comes after Anthem-covered patients at medical facilities that are part of the Hartford Health Care network — including The William W. Backus Hospital in Norwich — were left in limbo for nearly two months last fall while the two companies negotiated their dispute over a new contract.

The two companies came to an agreement near the end of November on a three-year contract for Anthem to insure patients at hospitals and medical facilities owned by Hartford Health Care after negotiations spilled past the Oct. 1 expiration of their previous contract.