United Healthcare

Hmm I discussed royalties in a reply today. I wonder when that post of mine will be taken down. AARP owns these forums so freedom of speech is not our right when we post here. AARP though might find it useful to read about complaints and then think about how they can make folks happier or discuss it with UHC (and others they get royalties from) to see if they can get them to fix issues. That certainly would be in the mission of AARP if they so choose.

Maybe some of us are suggesting we'd like to see other options available. The "AARP" name on products does carry some intrinsic weight. Otherwise it's just another marketplace without much value as intellectual property....it's somebody else hawking their wares.

I commented on several posts on this topic yesterday (12/12), and today they are all gone.

@DirkB349973 

Good article and I will add a bit more in describing how Medicare, the whole program works. 

i work as a volunteer patient advocate and I will say that prior approvals and denials of services are usually cleared up with some work.  

1,  Sometimes the provider of the service had their codes mixed up.  OR their records haven’t been fully updated with the patient’s diagnosis and plan of care and the procedure or treatment looks like it is just pulled out of thin air.

2.  The reason for a denial is important because both Traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage insurers should be working from the same best practices info.  So initially, that’s where the investigation has to start - with the CMS.gov -  Medicare National or Local Coverage Determination.

3. Then if the procedure is definitely not covered - it isn’t covered under either  Traditional Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan.   Then comes the explanation to the patient as to why something isn’t covered- and that is probably the hardest part.

Many times the process is long and detailed.  The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services is the government entity that makes all the rules for both Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans.  They are also the ones that pays the insurers in the managed care part of Medicare - Medicare Advantage plans.  CMS supports utilization management in Medicare Advantage plans - but sometimes they do leave an opening when the insurers can add to the amount they are paid be that a bonus for a high star rating or a higher payment if the MA beneficiary brings with them a higher risk.  

As with anything government, it is very complicated and personally I think it could be simplified but even more than that, there is a need for beneficiaries to understand how Medicare [all parts of it] actually work.  

📎  [Thursday 3/6/25] Seth @SethF456578 , gone are the days when AARP cared about people. NOW it is all about the age 18+ members and advertisements. Medicare is NOT a factor in their plans. Shame on that agent. It is THEIR PROBLEM!!! How can they sleep at night KNOWING they are referring "unsuspecting" old people to PLANS they know is suspect. Take care, Nicole  👵

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[*** @SethF456578 wrote:

Regardless of their legalese, slapping the AARP brand on it implies a tacit approval and must have significant value to UHC or they would not be paying AARP for the privilege. Therefore, AARP has a responsibility to its members, who they claim to be looking out for their best interests, to consider everything before allowing their brand association. They owe it to us, their membership.

 

This is certainly minor in the scheme of things, but even on the supplemental plans (i.e.: not the Advantage plans), UHC seems to have a bit of a cavalier attitude to what they provide. For example, one of the only 'perks' they offer is free gym membership at Planet Fitness and YMCA gyms. But recently, and without any notice, they just reduced the offering to the most basic level, so that I would now have to pay for the same benefits as I had just two months ago- and those using YMCA's have to pay to use them at all! No notice. No explanation.

 

When I asked the agent who sold me the UHC plan to ask about it, it took weeks to get a response, and that amounted to something akin to "so what, not our problem".  And this is something they offer in order to provide preventative options that will save THEM money from reduced claims!

 

Time for AARP to look after their members a little more than their wallets. I am sure another insurance company would love to step up and reach out to the members.... ***]

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Premium increase: there are two kinds of premium increases each year with supplements anyway. Each year you lose part of the age related discount on your birthday so rates go up for that reason. Then there is the increase that affects everyone on June 1 which is the annual increase due to costs. 

AARP doesn't stand behind this company or the other ones they endorse. It is strictly a financial arrangement where the other companies pay to use their logo. And, of course, if UHC pays them a ton that is worked into our premiums. They make about 1.2 billion off of endorsements by UHC, Oak Street Health, etc,

Do I wish AARP would only have arrangements like that with reputable companies that are honest and ethical? Yes. Unfortunately there is no law that I know of that regulates selling the use of their name. 

The 1.2 billion goes into the for profit arm of AARP (the membership we have is their non-profit arm) and pays for the bulk of what they do (they don't make all that much off of memberships). 

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@MichaelF913222 wrote:

So I'm one year in, and from July 2024 to July 2025 my Plan G policy from United HealthCare has gone up 30%. If this is typical, it will not be sustainable for me too much longer.

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And it's going to go up even more in future years because of the declining age-related discount you signed up for.  At least with that one, you know in advance what it will be.

Have you gone to medicare.gov to price other companies' Plan G supplements?  If you can pass medical underwriting, you can switch any time you want.  Or you might be in a state that has certain guaranteed-issue periods, where you can switch without medical underwriting.  Note that the open enrollment period at the end of the year has nothing to do with supplements.

If nothing else, you can use medicare.gov to look at what other supplements cost.  UHC is not the only one with big premium increases.  I read an insurance brokers' forum and ACE Insurance (Chubb) is having big increases.  One person reported 28% across the board in Oklahoma, for Plans A, F, G, and N.  (Even though N is assumed by most people to not go up as much because it presumably has a healthier risk pool.)  Another person said it's 18% in Georgia and 23% in Ohio and Alabama.  Someone else said in Illinois it's 47.6% for F and 39.7% for G. 

But realistically, there's nothing AARP can do about it.  The insurance companies set the premiums based on claims experience, and regulators approve them. 

[6/2/26] @8lackie , I am in Virginia & didnot know this!!! 😱 Medicare Drug Prices are already TOO HIGH. 😭

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➡️[*** @8lackie wrote:

AARP is in bed with UnitedHealth. 9 billion AARP gets from UnitedHealth. Now AARP backs a bill to raise drug prices in Virginia. Nice looking out for old people AARP!

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