Health Insurance Stocks Decline as Medicare Advantage Impact Hits

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Shares of Humana (HUM) experienced a significant drop in early Tuesday trading, accompanied by declines in rivals UnitedHealth (UNH) and CVS Health (CVS), as the health insurance sector faces challenges impacting 2024 profit forecasts.

The entire health insurance industry has underperformed the broader market this year, with Humana down nearly 25%. Concerns have arisen regarding profit margins due to increased medical costs associated with a surge in elective procedures. Delays in these procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to the current predicament.

UnitedHealth’s medical-cost ratio, a crucial industry gauge, surged by nearly 3 percentage points to 85% in the final quarter of 2023. This suggests that a higher proportion of collected premiums were disbursed for insurance claims.

Similarly, Humana reported a rise in its benefit-expense ratio by over 3 percentage points to 90.7% during the fourth quarter of 2023 compared to the same period in the previous year. This increase was also observed compared to the third quarter of 2023.

The industry’s challenges in managing rising medical costs highlight ongoing uncertainties impacting health insurers’ financial performance in the coming quarters.