MSN reports potential UHC Group shareholder insurrection/accountability at its 2025 Annual Meeting. Of the two named leaders, one is from the far Left. (I don't know about the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary of Quebec.)
Trillium Asset Management lists its headquarters in Boston, MA, but according to Morgan Stanley is a subsidiary of Perpetual Limited (“Perpetual”), an Australian-listed diversified financial services firm, and a part of Perpetual’s multi-boutique global asset management business.
Trillium functions in 38 states including Michigan, and manages $5.0 billion according to Investor.com.
It describes its founder, Joan Bavaria (1943-2008), as the "Founding Mother" of ESG Investing.
Trillium is a political activist. Business for America: "Trillium is a responsible investment firm that offers ESG strategies and services to advance a global sustainable economy and a just society. Learn how Trillium supports democracy, voting rights, and civic engagement through its business practices and engagements."
Shareholders urge UnitedHealth to analyze impact of healthcare denials
January 9, 2024NEW YORK / BOSTON (Reuters) - UnitedHealth Group shareholders on Wednesday said they requested the company prepare a report on the costs and public health impact related to its "practices that limit or delay access to healthcare."
If the proposal makes it to a vote at the company's annual meeting it would raise a charged topic after a senior executive was gunned down in Manhattan last month.
A spokesperson for UnitedHealth said the company will respond to shareholder proposals for its 2025 proxy statement once it files the document that serves as an agenda for its annual meeting, which has not yet been scheduled. In recent years, the company has issued its proxy in April ahead of a June annual meeting.
Those who filed the resolution include religious groups led by the Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary of Quebec, and Trillium Asset Management.
The group proposed an analysis of how prior authorization, or approval required by an insurer before a patient can receive medical care, and denials of medical services lead patients to forgo treatment.
“The pattern of delays and denials of necessary medical care by UnitedHealth and other insurance companies harms more than just the patient themselves,” Wendell Potter, president of the Center for Health & Democracy and a former Cigna executive, said in a statement sent in support of the resolution by the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility.
UnitedHealth runs the country's largest health insurer, UnitedHealthcare, as well as pharmacy benefit manager Optum and medical practices.
The killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December galvanized criticism of U.S. health insurers, with swarms of patients describing delayed or denied care and accusing companies of using deceptive practices.
Luigi Mangione, 26, who was accused of killing Thompson, pleaded not guilty in a New York court in December after receiving thousands of dollars in public donations shortly after his arrest.
In a December statement, UnitedHealth said it approves and pays for an average of 90% of medical claims submitted.
"Highly inaccurate and grossly misleading information has been circulated about our company’s treatment of insurance claims," UnitedHealth said.
UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty in a message to employees described Thompson as "one of the good guys," adding the company would continue to service the most vulnerable Americans.
(Reporting by Amina Niasse in New York and Ross Kerber in Boston; editing by Caroline Humer and Bill Berkrot)
The Hill reports further details, including many co-filers in the proposal.
https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/5074769-unitedhealth-denied-care-uhg-brian-thompson/?
UnitedHealth shareholders demand review of policies that ‘delayed or denied’ health care access
Shareholders of UnitedHealth Group (UHG) are calling on the company’s board of directors to release a report on how its policy of limiting or delaying access to health care may be impacting the company’s brand and the economy overall.The proposal by shareholders asked that the UHG board of directors produce a report looking into “how company practices impact access to healthcare and patient outcomes, including analyses of how often prior authorization requirements or denials of coverage lead to delay or abandonment of medical treatment and serious adverse events for patients.”
In a supporting statement, the shareholders said UHG policies that cause “delayed or avoided medical care” threaten both the company brand name as well as its investors’ portfolios by “increasing consumer debt, jeopardizing health of policyholders and thereby reducing workforce productivity, straining government resources, and risking increased taxes.”
Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary led the filing. Co-filers include: Benedictine Sisters of Baltimore – Emmanuel Monastery; Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica; Mercy Investment Services; Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia; Sisters of the Humility of Mary, OH; and Trillium Asset Management.
When reached for a response, a UHG spokesperson declined to specifically comment on this proposal, directing inquiries to a statement the company issued last month regarding “misinformation.” UHG said it approves and pays 90 percent of medical claims upon submission.
“Highly inaccurate and grossly misleading information has been circulated about our company’s treatment of insurance claims,” the statement read.
The company’s claim process came under congressional scrutiny last year, with a Senate report finding that UnitedHealthcare and other major health insurers denied post-acute care services for Medicare Advantage at “substantially higher rates” than prior authorization requests for other types of care.
“The data provided by the companies show that, not only did insurers deny prior authorization for postacute care more often than other services, but that the rate of denial was substantially higher for some companies,” the report found.
“For UnitedHealthcare and CVS, 2022 denial rates for prior authorization of post-acute care services were approximately three times higher than the companies’ overall denial rates. In the case of Humana, rates for 2022 were over 16 times higher.”
Timnit Ghermay, director of Northwest Coalition for Responsible Investment (NWCRI), led the filing of the proposal. Ghermay cited the recent killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in a statement explaining the request.
“UNH has been in the media and legislative spotlight for some time given its market dominance, aggressive marketing of Medicare Advantage and questionable use of AI algorithms to deny care to patients,” Ghermay said. “As the tragic murder of UNH’s Brian Thompson made evident, public outrage over the exorbitant costs and restricted access to healthcare has reached a dangerous level in our country.”
The NWCRI is part of the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR), which describes itself as a “coalition of faith- and values-based investors.” The ICCR has previously filed proposals for UHG to produce reports explaining its use of artificial intelligence as well as racial disparities within the company.
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