UnitedHealth admits that it’s under both civil and criminal federal investigations over alleged Medicare fraud
UnitedHealth Group admitted that it was being investigated by the Justice Department over its Medicare billing practices, months after dismissing reports about a probe.
In a statement on Thursday morning, the healthcare giant announced that it was cooperating with federal investigators and complying with both criminal and civil requests.
The company wrote that it “is committed to maintaining the integrity of its business practices and serving as reliable stewards of American tax dollars.”
In Thursday’s statement, UnitedHealth Group said that it reached out to the DOJ after “reviewing media reports” about investigations into its participation in the Medicare program.
In February, the Wall Street Journal reported that the DOJ was conducting a civil investigation into whether the company inflated diagnoses to secure additional payments for its Medicare Advantage plans.
UnitedHealth Group dismissed the report and said that it wasn’t aware of any new activity.
The Journal said in May that the DOJ was conducting a fraud investigation into the company’s Medicare Advantage program. UnitedHealth Group responded that it stands “by the integrity” of its health insurance program.
Earlier this month, the newspaper reported that the DOJ interviewed several doctors about whether they felt pressured by UnitedHealth to submit claims for certain conditions that would increase Medicare Advantage payments to the company.
UnitedHealth moved closer in March to ending a long legal dispute with the DOJ over allegations from a whistleblower that the company withheld at least $2 billion in payments related to the Medicare Advantage program.
An independent expert appointed by the judge to review the case issued a recommendation supporting UnitedHealth, concluding that the DOJ did not have sufficient evidence to prove allegations against the company.
Following the announcement, shares of UnitedHealth Group slipped on Thursday, extending a downward trend, as the company’s stock had fallen more than 40 percent so far this year.
That decline followed the December fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in midtown Manhattan, leading to the arrest of suspect Luigi Mangione.
The company has also been under pressure in recent quarters due to rising care use and rate cuts.
UnitedHealthcare, the insurance business division of the group, covers more than eight million people as the U.S.’s largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans.
Its Medicare and retirement segment brought in $139 billion in sales last year, making it UnitedHealth Group’s largest source of revenue.
