Journal of Urgent Care Medicine

Health Systems Break Ties With UnitedHealthcare

Several major health systems are struggling to reach contract agreements with UnitedHealthcare (UHC) to provide care services for members covered by the insurer. Recently, Duke Health posted in a blog that its UHC reimbursement is below the 25th percentile among similar hospitals in North Carolina, which it calls “unacceptable” as it continues contracting talks with UHC. If no agreement is achieved, Duke will be out-of-network as of November 1 for several health plan products, including …

UnitedHealthCare Wades Deeper into the Provider World by Buying HealthCare Partners

The line between payers and providers bent even further this week, as UnitedHealth Group Inc. announced plans to buy HealthCare Partners from DaVita Inc. It’s the second major acquisition of its kind for UHC this year; the company paid $2.3 billion for Surgical Care Affiliates just last March. The latest proposed deal came to light just days after CVS Health said it’s buying Aetna. It’s all part of a strategy for health insurers to lower …

UnitedHealthcare Tries to Cut Costs with ‘Free’ Primary Care

UnitedHealthcare (UHC) is testing a no-cost primary care model to see if it equates to greater use of preventive care and, ultimately, lower costs for the company. It farmed out the program to Harken Health, which gives members unlimited no-fee access to primary care services and a 24-hour helpline, a personal health coach, psychological counseling, and classes in fitness and nutrition. Access is limited at this point, however, as Harken has just six clinics in …