The past year has been a complicated one for health insurers, and our top stories of the year reflect the headwinds many companies faced and represent two unprecedented events that shook the industry.
Similar to 2023, multiple stories in the top 10 touch on the Medicare Advantage program, including Humana's struggles and Cigna's decision to exit the space. We also have a deep dive into the winners and losers in the latest star ratings, though those scores have been recalculated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for several payers following a spate of lawsuits.
This list also, perhaps unsurprisingly, includes several articles about industry behemoth UnitedHealth Group, which was at the center of two of the largest news stories in healthcare this year. In February, it was revealed that the company's Change Healthcare division had been breached by hackers in a ransomware attack that ultimately impacted 100 million people. In addition, months later, Brian Thompson, the CEO of the company's UnitedHealthcare arm, was executed in Manhattan while on his way to UHG's annual investor day.
Both of these stories captured the attention of our readers in the healthcare space as well as audiences across the country.
Here are the top 10 payer stories of 2024:
Change Healthcare begins breach notification to firms with impacted members, patients
On Feb. 22, UnitedHealth Group's Optum unit revealed that Change Healthcare had fallen victim to a cyberattack. The ransomware hit shut down critical billing and payment infrastructure as the clearinghouse went offline to contain the hack. Over the next several months, a series of events straight out of a spy movie unfolded. UnitedHealth paid a ransom to the hackers, notorious ransomware gang ALPHV, which then stiffed its own affiliate and ran off with the cash. UHG eventually revealed that about 100 million Americans had their data accessed in the hack, by far the largest ever in healthcare.
Humana exiting Medicare Advantage in 13 markets
The past year has certainly been a mixed bag for Humana as the company felt the full force of significant changes in Medicare Advantage (MA) payments as well as ongoing increases in utilization. In September, the company said it would trim down its MA footprint by exiting 13 markets in the 2025 plan year. By leaving those regions, Humana expects about 560,000 members would be affected—about 10% of its individual member base—though about half of those are likely to join another Humana plan.
UnitedHealth chief Andrew Witty was 2023's highest-paid payer CEO. Here's what his peers earned
Each year, we take a deep dive into insurance companies' annual proxy filings to analyze the salaries and compensation packages for the top CEOs. In 2023, UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty topped the list for the first time, bringing home $23.5 million in total compensation. Elevance Health CEO Gail Boudreaux landed at second place on the list with $21.9 million in compensation for 2023. Stock awards make up the largest share of compensation packages for these CEOs.
Optum layoffs: Ohio facility closing, 129 employees impacted
This is the first of two stories about layoffs at Optum that make the top 10 list of most-read stories this year. The company revealed in May that it would shut down its Optum Virtual Care division following significant social media speculation. It also downsized its Landmark Health unit and cut jobs at naviHealth, cutting dozens of jobs at both segments. Given Optum's prominence in the industry and its large employee base, it's not surprising that many readers would be tuned in for job cut news.
Optum WARN filing: 524 workers in California laid off
The second of the 2024 Optum layoffs duology to make this list: In July, WARN filings in California revealed that Optum would lay off 524 jobs in the state as it closed 15 locations, including Optum Infusion Services, urgent care and primary and specialty care clinics. The filing said Optum would lay off employees in waves beginning in September and running through January. A significant number of those who were laid off were remote workers, according to the filing.
UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting suspect charged with first-degree murder as an act of terrorism
Dec. 4 seemed like any other morning for health insurers, as industry leader UnitedHealth Group geared up to host its annual investor day and lay out expectations for the coming year. That sense of normalcy ended in violence when UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down in Manhattan while heading to the investor event. What followed was a manhunt that crossed multiple states and an outpouring of vitriol online before a man was arrested in central Pennsylvania and charged with Thompson's murder.
Medicare Advantage star ratings 2025—Who are the winners and losers?
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released data on the annual Medicare Advantage (MA) star ratings in mid-October, and the results were certainly not what major payers had hoped for. Changes to methodology and tighter cutpoints played a role in bringing down the ratings for key contracts at multiple health plans. However, many of the large national players later sued CMS over the star ratings, securing recalculations that equated to millions in additional quality bonus payments for MA.
California employee retirement system flips to Blue Shield of CA for PPO coverage
In June, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System (CalPERS) announced it would make the switch from Anthem Blue Cross to Blue Shield of California as the only health plan in its preferred provider organization. CAlPERS oversees pensions and health benefits for more than 1.5 million people and is the second-largest public purchaser of employee health benefits in the U.S., topped only by the federal government. Anthem had been the carrier for CalPERS for two decades previously.
Cigna inks deal to sell Medicare business to HCSC for $3.7B
Cigna began looking for a buyer for its Medicare unit in late 2023 and found one in Health Care Service Corporation. The two entered into an agreement in January for HCSC to scoop up the Medicare plans for $3.7 billion. Cigna CEO David Cordani said the company sees greater opportunity for growth in the Medicare space through its Evernorth unit, which includes Express Scripts, virtual care, data analytics and more. Cigna also reportedly engaged in on-and-off merger talks with Humana this year.
Humana braces to lose a 'few hundred thousand' members in 2025
Medicare Advantage insurers' woes first begin in the back half of 2023, and those challenges carried throughout 2024 as elevated utilization and regulatory changes battered the industry. As part of its second-quarter earnings release, Humana's top brass signaled plans to exit certain Medicare markets after identifying plans that weren't performing up to standard. Chief Financial Officer Susan Diamond told investors that the insurer was likely to lose "a few hundred thousand" members as part of the shift for 2025.