"The three cases involve a UnitedHealth partnership initiative that places medical staff from the company's direct care unit, Optum, inside nursing homes to care for residents insured by the company's insurance arm. UnitedHealth says one of the initiative's goals is to protect patients by reducing unnecessary hospital admissions. Those are admissions the insurance giant would otherwise have to pay for."
"In Georgia, the family of a woman named Cindy Deal filed a lawsuit alleging that the 58-year-old died because Optum and her nursing home failed to hospitalize her for hours after she started foaming at the mouth and appeared to be having a seizure. In Ohio, the family of a retiree named Mary Grant filed a lawsuit claiming that the 70-year-old died after Optum and Grant's nursing home failed to send her to the hospital, though she had suffered a traumatic head injury and began vomiting."
"Citing patient privacy rules and pending litigation, UnitedHealth's public relations team did not directly respond to specific questions about the three cases, but said that many of the claims were unsubstantiated or based on incomplete or embellished information. The company has previously denied the Grant and Deal families' claims in court, and attorneys representing UnitedHealth disputed some of Bieniek's claims."
Three nursing home residents died after employees connected to UnitedHealth's Optum unit reportedly delayed or refused hospital transfers. The cases involve an initiative that places Optum medical staff inside nursing homes to care for residents insured by UnitedHealth's insurance arm, with stated aims to reduce unnecessary hospital admissions. Families in Georgia and Ohio have filed lawsuits alleging fatal delays after seizures, vomiting, and traumatic head injury. A New York complaint alleges gross negligence and refusal to hospitalize a resident with kidney failure. UnitedHealth has characterized many claims as unsubstantiated and noted privacy and litigation constraints.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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