UnitedHealth 2Q Profit More Than Doubles On 2008 Charge

Source: Dow Jones Newswire

UnitedHealth Group Inc.'s (UNH) second-quarter earnings more than doubled amid prior-year charges and an increase in revenue, though enrollment continued to decline as U.S. unemployment mounts.

The health insurer, whose earnings topped analysts' expectations, raised the lower end of its 2009 forecast by 10 cents and now expects a profit of $3 to $ 3.15 a share.

Health insurers' profits remain under pressure from rising medical costs and falling enrollment, while expecting payments from their government plans to fall. The industry has been trying to discourage Washington from establishing competing public plans as the health-care debate continues.

UnitedHealth reported a profit of $859 million, or 73 cents a share, up from $ 337 million, or 27 cents a share, a year earlier. Prior-year items including legal settlements cut that period's profit by 40 cents.



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When they slap us with premium increases again.

We went with another insurance provider after that.

upcoming mandates . . . er, I mean upcoming Universal Coverage will keep those profits doubling . . . and doubling . . . and

But they would never put profit over our safety would they? They would never adopt "money trumps peace"-gwb would they? I'm sure these insurance co. have our best interest in mind by preventing health care via their accountant/lawyers/doctors telling us how are medically treatment is not "medically unnessasary"!

Mind boggling.

that's loose change congress finds under their couch.

Our economy remains one of the most powerful in the World, yet our health care system ranks 37th in the world, which places us between Costa Rica at 36th and Slovenia at 38th.

Att the same time, our private insurance giants rake in billions of profits utilizing a scheme that a former head of corporate communications for US insurance giant CIGNA, Wendell Potter, testified about before Congress saying that these insurance giants “make money by avoiding as much risk as possible and ducking people who are sick. They delay and deny care. They rescind policies. If people who have paid premiums for years have high insurance bills, they will use any reason they can find to cancel their policies.”

UnitedHealth Group proves Mr. Potter's statements to be true -- they increased profits while enrollment was down. The only way to do that is to RATION HEALTH CARE to make profits.

Profits over health care is NOT a system that is ever going to achieve good results.

So why is Congress pushing to pass legislation to MANDATE we all be forced to buy into this bad system????

ugh

through denial of care and pay the fines or jury awards than it is to pay for health care.

When's the last time they reported a loss?