A UnitedHealthcare Program Stopped by New York Attorney General Citing ‘Irreparable Harm’
July 24th, 2007
In a July 13 letter to United Healthcare, the New York attorney general’s office has asked United Healthcare to halt its Premium Designation Program and cancel the impending release of its physician rankings.
Citing concerns of physician groups, Linda Lacewell, an attorney in the office of Andrew M. Cuomo, said that such a program has a “strong likelihood of causing consumer confusion, if not deception.” She further cited United’s profit motive as potentially affecting the accuracy of the quality rankings, and suggested that consumers may be steered to doctors based on faulty data and criteria.
The action was quickly followed by a decision by United to delay implementation of the program in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. United’s program has been implemented in North Carolina; physician groups including the NCMS have raised numerous concerns and have asked for an in depth review of the program’s methodology.
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