UnitedHealth’s cyberattack response costs to surpass $2.3B this year
healthcaredive.com
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Contributed by: Drex DeFord
Summary
UnitedHealth has revised its projections for the costs associated with the massive cyberattack on its payments processor, Change, estimating impacts at $2.3 billion to $2.45 billion for the year, an increase of roughly $1 billion. The ransomware attack in February halted reimbursement processes and compromised the data of an estimated one-third of Americans, resulting in a $22 million ransom payment that ultimately failed to secure patient data. UnitedHealth’s second-quarter profit dropped to $4.2 billion from $5.5 billion due to these expenses, even as revenue grew by almost 7% to $98.9 billion. The company continues to face elevated medical costs partly due to temporarily increased provider coding during the crisis. UnitedHealth is also managing operational challenges and regulatory scrutiny, including investigations by the Department of Justice and potential litigation from the Federal Trade Commission regarding its business practices.
