UnitedHealths Next Physician Acquisition & The January Health Insurance Churn

Oleh Admin 09 Jan, 2024 Posting Komentar

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JPM24 ~here~

The JPMorgan Healthcare conference is very complex and expensive - an apt metaphor for the healthcare system itself. But the collusion also serves as a truth serum, as healthcare executives, lawyers and financiers become so enthused by the interactions and deals that their true motives become apparent when they take the stage.

This is especially true for hospitals. At a conference last year, hospital executives made a few things clear: They would raise prices and buy supplies to increase sales. Well, it happened, and now Tara and I are hoping hospitals will be more optimistic, even if they still lose money on patient care, as we wrote in our JPM24 preview.

There will be 16 nonprofit and tax-exempt hospital systems represented at this year's JPM meeting, and Tara will focus on them. Other important topics we cover? How health insurers view Medicare Advantage as it gains more control and enrollees receive more care, and whether there will be major IPOs among health care providers or health insurers this year. Read our review of this year's conference.

Rotation of health insurance in January

An underappreciated dysfunction in our health care system: Every month, millions of American workers lose or change their health insurance, inevitably creating confusion among doctors and hospitals and potentially delaying care.

However, these dynamics are not always reflected in the federal government's data on workplace layoffs (the latest data was released Friday). What about people who don't quit their jobs but still switch to a different health insurance plan?

This effect is clearly visible in early January, when new health insurance policies take effect for most employees. Employers can change companies and force employees to purchase new insurance cards. Or someone switches to their spouse's or partner's employer plan. The appointment is delayed because, wow, you have new insurance and everything wasn't approved in time. Has this happened to you or someone you know? Sign up to receive stories about health insurance changes: [email protected] .

Competition Manager

A few weeks ago, we told you about the new healthcare competition consultants that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Department of Justice are launching as part of the Biden administration's crackdown on "corporate greed" in healthcare.

My colleague Brittany Trang has information on the Department of Health and Human Services' selection for a new competition director: Stacey Sanders. Currently at HHS, he is responsible for, among other things, overseeing Medicare drug price negotiations and will now lead the agency's efforts to promote competition in health care markets. Before joining the Department of Health and Human Services in 2022, he served as chief of staff to Senator Bob Casey and before that as director of federal policy for the Center for Medicare Rights, a patient advocacy group. Know more.

Baca Juga

Walgreens: They Don't Like Suppliers Anymore

Walgreens went through a period where I increasingly wanted to be your doctor and nurse; For example, the company continued to invest in VillageMD and acquired Summit Health. But now that the pharmacy chain is under new management, that vision will no longer be expanded.

"I don't expect us to invest in additional primary care assets," new CEO Tim Wentworth said during a financial conference call last week. Wentworth, the former president of Express Scripts, the giant pharmacy benefit management company sold to Cigna, replaces Rosalind Brewer, who was fired in October.

One of the reasons Walgreens is cutting the number of suppliers is that Wall Street is very unhappy with the company's financial position, and the biggest obstacle to Walgreens' profitability is VillageMD. FYI: Wentworth said Walgreens has no plans to buy PBMs either. If you're hungry for more, Walgreens is coming to the JPM Theater today at 11:15 a.m. ET.

UnitedHealth's Upcoming Physician Acquisition

UnitedHealth Group wants to buy a Corvallis clinic with a 100-physician practice in western Oregon, The Lund Report's Christian Whitwell reports.

UnitedHealth already employs or is affiliated with 10% of all physicians in the United States. This deal only happened because the Oregon Health Authority, a division of the state government, has a "health care market surveillance" program that requires reporting and evaluation of large transactions within the community.

Trivia from the industry

UnitedHealth reported fourth-quarter results Friday morning.
Stay with UnitedHealth: The company is suing a small company that provides health care to people with diabetes. That competitor was founded by two former UnitedHealth executives, and the lawsuit alleges that those former employees stole trade secrets they had previously sold to UnitedHealth to create their own competing company. Read the lawsuit.
In a note to investors, the company said it expects Medicare Advantage enrollment to grow by at least 800,000 in 2024. It's a large number that was partly expected after companies like Humana said they were "uncompetitive" this year. In fact, CVS attributed the expected strong membership growth to a "higher-than-average share of new sales coming from competing MA plans."
Essentia Health and Marshfield Clinic Health System, large hospital systems with facilities in Minnesota, Wisconsin and North Dakota, have completed merger negotiations.
Amir Dan Rubin, the former CEO of One Medical, has founded his own healthcare venture firm called Healthier Capital, reports Melanie Evans of the Wall Street Journal.
Select Medical, whose core business is operating long-term hospitals and inpatient rehabilitation centers, is considering spinning off Concentra, its unit that operates employee health clinics.