Top North Carolina officials are closely watching contract negotiations between Duke Health and health insurance company Aetna — which are now heating up, with barely a month left to salvage a deal — over fears the outcome could lead to higher insurance costs for state employees or upend existing care.

The state government doesn’t typically pay much attention to contract disputes between private companies. But Aetna administers the North Carolina State Health Plan and provides insurance for over 750,00 state employees, retirees and their families. Aetna also insures hundreds of thousands more North Carolinians through other private companies. Duke Health, meanwhile, is one of the Triangle’s biggest health care providers.

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