Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
No Drama Expected For UnitedHealth's 4th Quarter Earnings Report
The Wall Street Journal: UnitedHealth Is Poised To Pass Its Earnings Checkup
At a moment of uncertainty for health insurers, there appear to be few risks to UnitedHealth Group Inc.’s strong long-term performance. The country’s largest publicly traded health insurer by market value will report fourth-quarter results on Tuesday. Analyst consensus calls for sales of $47.4 billion and adjusted earnings per share of $2.07, according to FactSet. There shouldn’t be too much drama in the headline numbers. UnitedHealth has lagged behind the earnings consensus just one time since the fourth quarter of 2011. (Grant, 1/16)
The New York Times: The Other Kushner Brother’s Big Bet
Just days after the 2016 presidential election, a young venture capitalist called an emergency staff meeting.Prepare for a storm of publicity, he told one of the start-ups that he had helped found. There would be questions about his political affiliations and loyalties, he said. There would be questions about the survivability of the start-up, a health insurance company named Oscar Health. The world was about to change, he said. (Benner, 1/13)
Meanwhile, news from Massachusetts about health care price variations —
Boston Globe: Insurers Press Case For Fix To Hospital Cost Variations
Massachusetts health insurers and employers say new regulations are needed to narrow the wide variation in prices charged by hospitals for the same services, arguing that the disparities here are bigger than in other parts of the country. In a new report, a consultant for the Massachusetts Association of Health Plans said market-based solutions haven’t been enough, and that temporary regulatory fixes, including payment rate caps, could help. The hospital industry objects to such an approach. (Dayal McCluskey, 1/16)
