UnitedHealthcare, a unit of UnitedHealth Group, has reportedly offered buyouts to certain employees as part of a restructuring effort. According to two sources familiar with the matter, employees who decline the buyout offer will either remain in their current roles or be reassigned to comparable positions. If the company does not meet its targeted resignation numbers through voluntary buyouts, layoffs may follow, as indicated on an internal resource site.
The benefits operations unit affected by this decision oversees various subdivisions responsible for customer service, claims processing, enrollment, and insurance benefits management. As of December 31, 2023, UnitedHealth Group employed over 440,000 people, per its latest annual filing.
The company, along with its peers offering government-backed Medicare and Medicaid plans, has faced rising medical costs over recent quarters, pressuring profit margins in 2024. Additional challenges in 2023 included a cyberattack on its tech division, Change Healthcare, and public backlash over denied insurance claims following the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
UnitedHealthcare informed employees about the buyout offers during a brief 10-minute meeting on Monday. An internal memo sent the same day stated that employee terminations are not expected to occur before May 1. Some employees accepting buyouts may be required to work beyond that date, but the company does not anticipate needing them past November 13.
The buyout eligibility includes full-time and part-time U.S.-based workers assigned to four internal segments under benefits operations: corporate, consumer operations, core services, and provider services.
— news from Reuters