UnitedHealth stock drops 17% after report it is being probed by DOJ for alleged Medicare fraud

UnitedHealth Group’s stock plunged Thursday morning after a report that the embattled insurance giant was being probed for Medicare fraud.The Department of Justice has been conducting the criminal investigation into whether the company — which pushed out CEO Andrew Witty on Monday — manipulated Medicare Advantage billing practices to improperly increase federal payments by inflating patient risk scores, the Wall Street Journal reported on WednesdayThe existence of the probe, which began last year but had not been previously disclosed week, sent shares of UnitedHealth plummeting 17% after the opening bell.Shares have fallen more than 50% in the past month.The investigation is being overseen by the DOJ’s criminal healthcare fraud unit, with prosecutors based in New York leading the inquiry, sources told the Journal.UnitedHealth, which was rocked last year by the execution-style killing of top executive Brian Thompson, said it had not been notified of the investigation.“We stand by the integrity of our Medicare Advantage program,” a spokesperson said in a statement.The Justice Department declined to comment.

The Post has sought comment from UnitedHealth.The revelation adds to mounting scrutiny of the company, which was already facing civil and antitrust investigations.In addition to the CEO shake-up, UnitedHealth has been dealing with the fallout of a cyberattack that disrupted payments to providers nationwide and Thompson’s killing.Last December, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, a subsidiary which sells health insurance, was gunned down in Manhattan by alleged assassin Luigi Mangione.In February, the Journal reported that UnitedHealth was under civil investigation for potentially fraudulent Medicare billing practices at its Optum division.At the time, the company dismissed the story as “misinformation” and said it was unaware of any new probes.However, an internal March 11 email from a UnitedHealth attorney, disclosed in a shareholder lawsuit, acknowle...