Hello Again,

I wanted to update everyone on what I thought was a rather curious comment I found posted on the blog I wrote two weeks ago about United Health Group. You might remember that, in the blog, I questioned whether United Health had really lost money on the ACA exchanges last year.

Someone named Kelley Stettenbauer Wagner, who is a marketing specialist for United Health Group, posted a comment on my blog. Here is a link to a screenshot of the comment (in case it’s ever deleted):

http://truecostofhealthcare.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Response-to-UHG-Blog.pdf

And here is the comment:

“The company pulled the business out of the exchanges because they projected they would lose money. Keep in mind, this has only been a source of revenue for 2 years. They analyze the businesses individually. So overall numbers are great. When taken singularly, the preexisting conditions of the exchange plans make those less profitable right away. Analyzed over only 3 years, the PROJECTION is loss. Whether they actually lose money on those plans remains to be seen.” (italics added)

So all of this was about a projected loss, not an actual loss? Really?? That’s not what all of the headlines said. OK, I have no idea if this person is actually speaking on behalf of UHG or if she’s speaking on her own. I also wouldn’t know if she has any idea what she’s talking about. I’m pretty sure that she does, in fact, work for United Health since this is her Linkedin profile:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-wagner-10933a9

So, given the evidence my blog presented, you really have to wonder why anyone from United Health would volunteer such a comment. Marketing specialists are normally among the most disciplined employees when it comes to messaging, yet what she said appears to contradict the narrative UHG has been putting out for the last nine months. I wonder if United Health is aware of this rather curious comment.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-belk/did-united-health-really-_b_10798584.html

David Belk MD