By Katherine Hamilton
The Justice Department filed a complaint alleging three of the largest health insurers paid illegal kickbacks to three of the biggest health-insurance brokers.
The DOJ alleges in its complaint that CVS Health-unit Aetna, Elevance Health and Humana paid the kickbacks to brokers eHealth, GoHealth and SelectQuote in exchange for enrollments into the insurers' Medicare Advantage plans. The complaint, filed Thursday, said the alleged transactions occurred from 2016 to 2021.
Patients often work with insurance brokers to choose a provider. Beneficiaries of the Medicare Advantage program can enroll in plans offered by private insurers.
The DOJ alleges the brokers included in the complaint didn't act as unbiased stewards to help consumers choose a provider, but rather directed them to insurers that paid the most in kickbacks.
The department also alleges Aetna and Humana pressured brokers to enroll fewer Medicare beneficiaries with disabilities by threatening to withhold kickbacks.
Write to Katherine Hamilton at katherine.hamilton@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 01, 2025 14:46 ET (18:46 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.