News Briefs
✦ Despite care utilization patterns rising closer to normal levels in the third quarter of 2020, adjusted earnings per share (EPS) for UnitedHealth Group fell 10% year-over-year to $3.51 as the company undertook “extensive consumer and customer financial assistance measures,” the insurer reported on Oct. 14. Medical loss ratio for the quarter was 81.9%, compared with 82.4% a year ago, driven by “modestly lower care patterns and the return of the health insurance tax,” and offset by COVID-19 assistance measures that included support of state testing and contact tracing efforts. For the quarter ending Sept. 30, the UnitedHealthcare segment recorded $50.4 billion in revenue, compared with $48.1 billion in the third quarter of 2019. That increase was fueled by growth in the firm’s public-sector and senior programs, which served 935,000 additional people year to date, and was partially offset by declining commercial enrollment. As of Sept. 30, UnitedHealthcare served 5.67 million Medicare Advantage lives (up from 5.6 million in the second quarter) and 6.4 million Medicaid enrollees (compared with 6.2 million in the previous quarter). UnitedHealth raised its full-year adjusted EPS outlook to a range of $16.50 to $16.75, from an earlier range of $16.25 to $16.55. Visit www.unitedhealthgroup.com/investors.
✦ Clover Health recently unveiled its intent to go public via a merger with Social Capital Hedosophia Holdings Corp. III, which is a special purpose acquisition company. The transaction, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2021, values Clover at $3.7 billion and will provide up to $1.2 billion in cash for the newly constituted company. Visit www.cloverhealth.com.