- We're Not Greece: Italian Prime Minister Monti
- Private Homebuilders in the US: Dead Men Walking
- Dividend Payout Could Hit Record Amount This Year
- With Investors So Bullish, Stock Pullback Must Be Ahead
- Obama Likely to Call for Cutting Top Corporate Tax Rate
- New York Fashion Week Fall 2012
- NetNet: Why Saving Greece Could Destroy the World
- My Funny Valentine: When Love and the Fed Collide
- Is Bill Gross, PIMCO's Bond King, Losing His Touch?
MOST SHARED
- Greek Cabinet Approves EU, IMF Bailout Bill
- The Week Ahead: Sharp Eye on Greece
- Your First Move For Monday February 13th
- When Love and the Fed Collide
- Why Greece Will Default, Leave the Euro Zone
- How Rescuing Greece Could Destroy the World
- Cramer: 10 Earnings to Watch Next Week
- Obama Backs Down on Birth Control Plan
- Private Homebuilders: Dead Men Walking
- 2012: The Year of the Stock Picker
MOST POPULAR
HOT ON FACEBOOK
UnitedHealth, Insurer Shares Drop on N.Y. Lawsuit
Text Size 
The New York Attorney General's Office said it plans to file suit against Ingenix, its parent UnitedHealth Group, and three additional subsidiaries, as part of an investigation into a "scheme by health insurers to defraud consumers by manipulating reimbursement rates."
 |
Shares of UnitedHealth tumbled [UNH
Loading...
()
] about 5 percent on the news.
In addition, New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said he has issued 16 subpoenas to health insurance companies, including Aetna [AET
Loading...
()
], Cigna [CI
Loading...
()
], and Wellpoint's [WLP
Loading...
()
] Empire BlueCross BlueShield.
Shares of those companies fell as well, though none to the same extent as UnitedHealth.
In a news release, Cuomo said a six-month investigation found that Ingenix operates a "defective and manipulated database that most major health insurance companies use to set reimbursement rates for out-of-network medical expenses.
"Further, the investigation found that two subsidiaries of United dramatically under-reimbursed their members for out-of-network medical expenses by using data provided by Ingenix."
"Getting insurance companies to keep their promises and cover medical costs can be hard enough as it is," Cuomo said. "But when insurers like United create convoluted and dishonest systems for determining the rate of reimbursement, real people get stuck with excessive bills and are less likely to seek the care they need."
UnitedHealth said it was in ongoing discussions with Cuomo's office on the issue and would continue to cooperate fully.
"UnitedHealth Group recognizes the excellent health care delivered to patients by the physicians of New York and is committed to fair and appropriate payment for physicians, the state's other health care providers and consumers," UnitedHealth said in a statement.
The subpoenas to health insurers request documents showing how the companies compute reasonable and customary rates, copies of member complaints and appeals, and communications with members and between Ingenix and the insurer on the issue, the New York AG said.
- Marketing clichés aside, sometimes diamonds are for investing.
- The ‘Fast Money’ traders weigh in on fashion related stocks from apparel to footwear.
- This list of the 10 most active cities for speed traps was compiled by Trapster.com. See if your town is there.
- This Valentine’s Day should prove a love fest for restaurants, as many couples will be dining out.
- Here’s a look at Westminster Kennel Club’s most successful breeds—and how much they cost.
- What kind of homes do celebrity couples share? Here’s our updated list. Take a look.
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes
