via Wall Street Journal
UnitedHealth Group Inc. on Tuesday posted strong earnings for its latest quarter as revenue continued to surge in its pharmacy-services business. The company, which is the biggest U.S. health insurer, also gave a slightly rosier full-year outlook.
But amid the positive news, there was one abiding dark spot: Affordable Care Act plans, which UnitedHealth will almost completely stop selling next year. The insurer booked another $200 million in full-year ACA-plan losses in the second quarter, bringing its projected total loss for the year to about $850 million. About $245 million of that was included in 2015 results and $605 million this year.
ACA-plan enrollments were larger than expected, including more limited attrition. Also, costs mounted because enrollees were even sicker than projected, with more chronic conditions than last year, including AIDS, hepatitis C, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
