UnitedHealth’s Shares Plummet Due to Enrollment Challenges in Medicaid

During the Bernstein investor conference, a UnitedHealth executive discussed the disruptions in Medicaid due to ongoing challenges with program-wide enrollment that started a year ago. Insurers base premium rates on expected enrollment levels and medical services utilization. The discontinuation of a COVID-19 policy in April 2023 led states to reassess Medicaid coverage eligibility, resulting in disenrollments and renewals.

UnitedHealth’s shares fell 4.2%, while competitors like Humana, Centene, and Elevance Health saw declines ranging from 2.6% to 3.7%. Analysts like Scott Fidel from Stephens noted concerns about the discrepancy between rates and costs in Medicare Advantage programs over the past year and how this trend could also affect Medicaid plans.

The Kaiser Family Foundation estimated that millions of people were disenrolled from Medicaid and CHIP programs, with ongoing renewals. In addition to managing Medicaid plans, UnitedHealth and other insurers oversee health plans for the Medicare program for older adults and individuals with disabilities. Insurers were surprised by increased healthcare utilization within these programs in late 2023 and early 2024. The impact of these changes on insurers and their operations is still being assessed.

During the redetermination cycle, insurers experienced significant challenges due to ongoing enrollment issues that started a year ago. These challenges have affected insurance companies’ ability to predict premium rates based on expected enrollment levels and medical services utilization.

UnitedHealth’s shares fell 4.2%, while competitors like Humana, Centene, and Elevance Health saw declines ranging from 2.6% to 3.7%. The company’s executive highlighted concerns about reimbursement rates for Medicaid due to ongoing challenges with program-wide enrollment that started a year ago.

Analysts like Scott Fidel from Stephens noted concerns about the discrepancy between rates and costs in Medicare Advantage programs over the past year