UnitedHealthcare (UHC) has been in the news frequently over the last 9 months. CEO Brian Thompson was shot back in December and his alleged killer, Luigi Mangione, is facing trial for the crime.
Now UHC is back in the news, this time as it faces a federal investigation into its Medicare businesses:
Shares of UnitedHealth Group dove early Thursday after the health care giant said it was under a Department of Justice investigation. The company said it has started complying with both criminal and civil requests from federal investigators, and it was working cooperatively with them.
“(UnitedHealth) has a long record of responsible conduct and effective compliance,” the company said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
Earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal said federal officials had launched a civil fraud investigation into how the company records diagnoses that lead to extra payments for its Medicare Advantage, or MA, plans. Those are privately run versions of the government’s Medicare coverage program, mostly for people ages 65 and over.
UHC issued a statement today:
UnitedHealth Group (the “Company”) proactively reached out to the Department of Justice after reviewing media reports about investigations into certain aspects of the Company’s participation in the Medicare program. The Company has now begun complying with formal criminal and civil requests from the Department. The Company has full confidence in its practices and is committed to working cooperatively with the Department throughout this process.
The Company has a long record of responsible conduct and effective compliance. Independent CMS audits confirm that the Company’s practices are among the most accurate in the industry, and, following a decade-long civil challenge by the Department to aspects of our Medicare Advantage business, a court-appointed Special Master concluded there was no evidence to support claims of wrongdoing.
To provide our stakeholders transparency and confidence in the Company’s practices, the Company, as previously announced, has proactively launched its own initiative to conduct third party reviews of policies, practices, and associated processes and performance metrics for risk assessment coding, managed care practices, and pharmacy services.
The Company is committed to maintaining the integrity of its business practices and serving as reliable stewards of American tax dollars.
The investigations are ongoing.
Obamacare damaged health insurance, and by design.
Anyone who has a UHC plan has to be looking at this with a concerned eye.
The pro-Mangione crowd was cheering on this news:
Crazy is one way of putting it.
It's clear the Trump DOJ is determined to weed out fraud, waste, and abuse of our systems so they work for the people who need them.
Americans.