UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH), the biggest U.S. health insurer, said it may lose members in New York as the market becomes more crowded, driving down prices.
“We believe several carriers there, including new entrants, are pricing well below cost and at what we would view as unsustainable pricing levels,” said Chief Executive Officer Stephen Hemsley in a conference call today. “If this climate continues, we could see some further pressure on risk-based membership beyond the ranges we anticipated this year.”
Hemsley also said UnitedHealth may boost participation in public insurance exchanges set up under Obamacare. New York is now one of just five states where the insurer is involved an exchange. In comparison, WellPoint, the nation’s second largest health plan, is on 14 state exchanges.
Shares of Minnetonka, Minnesota-based UnitedHealth fell 3.1 percent to close at $75.78 in New York. The insurer has gained 26 percent in the past 12 months through today.
Net income in the quarter fell 7.8 percent to $1.1 billion, or $1.10 a share, hurt by cuts to the Medicare Advantage program for elderly and disabled Americans. Unitedhealth, the first insurer to report this quarter, is often a bellwether for results from other health plans.
The intensified pricing competition in New York is unique to the state as several competitors who previously left the marketplace re-entered in January, Gail Boudreaux, an executive vice president, said on the call. Nonetheless, the company will “stay very disciplined in our pricing,” she said.
New York is “one of the larger markets” for UnitedHealth, according to spokesman Tyler Mason, who said in an e-mail that the company doesn’t rank membership by states.
Date: Apr 18, 2014