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UnitedHealth Group (UNH-0.13%) shares cratered more than 13% Thursday morning after The Wall Street Journal reported that the Department of Justice is conducting a criminal investigation into the company’s Medicare billing practices.
The sharp sell-off deepens a month-long rout that has seen UnitedHealth shed more than half its market value — a more than estimated $300 billion — raising fears of a crisis of confidence in one of the most powerful companies in American healthcare.
According to The Journal’s report, the DOJ’s probe, which has been underway since at least mid-2024, is centered on whether UnitedHealth fraudulently inflated patient diagnoses to secure higher payouts from Medicare. While the exact nature of the alleged criminal conduct remains unclear, the DOJ had already launched a civil investigation into similar issues earlier this year.
The DOJ has not publicly commented on the reported investigation.
UnitedHealth pushed back against the story, calling it “deeply irresponsible, as even it admits that the ‘exact nature of the potential criminal allegations is unclear.’” In a statement, the company said it had not been formally notified of any criminal investigation and reiterated that it “stands by the integrity of [its] Medicare Advantage program.”
UnitedHealth’s stock has repeatedly dragged the Dow into the red over the past month because of broad challenges that have plagued the company recently — including an abrupt leadership shake-up, a presidential administration looking to cut federal health spending, and a suspension of its financial outlook for 2025. The stock dropped 18% on Tuesday before closing down just 1% yesterday.
The company’s shares were trading at $269.02, down 11.7% on the day (as of around 3 p.m. ET) and down more than 50% from their April highs, 46% since the start of the year, and 54% over the last six months. The company, once the most influential stock in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, has now fallen to 16th by weight.
Adding to the turmoil are broader challenges that have plagued the company throughout 2024 and into this year: a devastating cyberattack on its Change Healthcare subsidiary, mounting political scrutiny of its pharmacy benefit manager business, and the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
The reported DOJ criminal investigation adds to a growing list of government probes into UnitedHealth — including a civil inquiry into its Medicare billing practices and continuing investigations into potential antitrust violations.