UnitedHealth says it is under a federal investigation and cooperating
[July 25, 2025] By
TOM MURPHY
UnitedHealth Group says it is cooperating with federal criminal and
civil investigations involving its market-leading Medicare business.
The health care giant said Thursday that it had contacted the Department
of Justice after reviewing media reports about investigations into
certain elements of its business.
“(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.
The company’s UnitedHealthcare business covers more than 8 million
people as the nation’s largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans. The
business has been under pressure in recent quarters due to rising care
use and rate cuts.
The Journal said in February, citing anonymous sources, that the probe
focused on billing practices in recent months.
The paper has since said that a federal criminal health care-fraud unit
was investigating how the company used doctors and nurses to gather
diagnoses that bolster payments.
UnitedHealth said in the filing Thursday that it "has full confidence in
its practices and is committed to working cooperatively with the
Department throughout this process."
UnitedHealth Group Inc. runs one of the nation's largest health
insurance and pharmacy benefits management businesses. It also operates
a growing Optum business that provides care and technology support.
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The logo for UnitedHealth Group appears above a trading post on the
floor of the New York Stock Exchange, April 17, 2025. (AP
Photo/Richard Drew, file)
 UnitedHealth raked in more than $400
billion in revenue last year to come in third in the Fortune 500
list of biggest U.S. companies. Its share price topped $630 last
fall to reach a new all-time high.
But the stock has mostly shed value since December, when
UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot in midtown
Manhattan on his way to the company’s annual investor meeting. A
suspect, Luigi Mangione, has been charged in connection with the
shooting.
In April, shares plunged some more after the company cut its
forecast due to a spike in health care use. A month later, former
CEO Andrew Witty resigned, and the company withdrew its forecast
entirely, saying that medical costs from new Medicare Advantage
members were higher than expected.
The stock price was down more than 3%, or $10.73, to $281.78
Thursday afternoon. That represents a 55% drop from the all-time
high it hit in November. Broader indexes were mixed.
UnitedHealth will report its second-quarter results next Tuesday.
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