DOJ sues UnitedHealth amid $3.3 billion bid to buy home care giant Amedisys

MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota-based UnitedHealth Group Inc. is the focus of an antitrust lawsuit filed on Tuesday by the United States Department of Justice.

A UnitedHealth spokesperson confirmed with WCCO that the suit involves the health insurance giant’s proposed $3.3 billion acquisition of Louisiana-based Amedisys Inc., one of the country’s biggest home health and hospice care providers.

Bloomberg News reports the suit was filed days after a meeting last weekend between the justice department and heads of both health care companies failed to quell concerns of possible antitrust issues, despite the companies’ joint offer to sell off 100-plus clinics to a Texas-based competitor.

The justice department believes the acquisition could “lead to higher prices in home health care in regions where Amedisys is a main competitor” to LHC Group, Bloomberg reports, a business UnitedHealth purchased in 2023. Both companies operate in many of the same states, especially in the South.

This isn’t the first time the justice department has had UnitedHealth in its legal crosshairs. Just two years ago, it unsuccessfully sued the company amid its purchase of Change Healthcare, the IT firm targeted in the cyberattack in February that reportedly cost UnitedHealth $872 million due to a lack of multifactor authentication. UnitedHealth paid a Bitcoin ransom valued at $22 million.

Amedisys’ stock value dropped on Tuesday following news of the upcoming suit. A UnitedHealth spokesperson gave this statement to WCCO on Tuesday:

“The Amedisys combination with [subsidiary company] Optum would be pro-competitive and further innovation, leading to improved patient outcomes and greater access to quality care. We will vigorously defend against the DOJ’s overreaching interpretation of the antitrust laws.”

More than 47 million Americans get their health insurance from UnitedHealth.