UnitedHealthcare Expands Fitness Program to Medicare Advantage Plans in North Carolina

Renew Active^TM to offer access to extensive network of fitness locations and new features to help support an active mind – all at no additional cost

UnitedHealthcare will expand its fitness program for people enrolled in its Medicare Advantage plans to North Carolina and 11 additional states in 2019. The company is also enhancing the program with new features and rebranding it as Renew Active.

Renew Active is a fitness program for body and mind designed to help people live their best lives and achieve their health and wellness goals. It provides access to an extensive choice of more than 6,000 fitness locations, including national, regional and local options, at no additional cost. In North Carolina, this includes participating Anytime Fitness, Curves, Fitness Connection, Gold's Gym, LA Fitness, Life Time and Snap Fitness locations. Locations also include local participating YMCAs.

Through Renew Active, people can take advantage of an in-person fitness orientation to help them get started toward reaching their goals as well as all of the benefits of a standard membership at participating fitness locations, including a wide variety of equipment, amenities and group exercise classes.

UnitedHealthcare is also adding new features to Renew Active so that plan participants can challenge themselves both physically and mentally. The program will offer online exercises and activities to help people keep their minds active.

Renew Active is available at no additional cost to people enrolled in eligible UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans.

"We know that our health and well-being are closely connected not just to the care we receive from our doctors but also to the way we live our lives," said Tommy O'Connor, CEO of UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement in North Carolina. "With Renew Active, we hope to make it easier, more convenient and more affordable for people in North Carolina to stay active, both physically and mentally."

UnitedHealthcare introduced its fitness program in 2017 because of the important role that exercise plays in health and quality of life as people age. The response from people enrolled in its Medicare Advantage plans has been overwhelmingly positive, prompting the company to significantly expand the program.

In 2019, Renew Active will be newly available to people enrolled in select Medicare Advantage plans in California, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina and Utah. These people will join the nearly 1.1 million Medicare Advantage plan participants in 11 other states who currently have access to the program.

"Anytime Fitness and Self Esteem Brands have helped thousands of seniors become more physically fit through our participation in the Renew Active network," said Chuck Runyon, CEO of Anytime Fitness. "We look forward to providing more fitness choices to UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage members in 2019 when Renew Active expands to North Carolina."

"At Life Time, we help our members achieve their health objectives and fitness goals, no matter their age," said Mark Laylin, senior vice president, national sales, Life Time. "We're eager to bring our world-class facilities and programming to North Carolina seniors and support their health journey through our participation in the Renew Active program in 2019."

The rebranding of the program – previously known as Optum Fitness Advantage – aligns it with Renew by UnitedHealthcare, the company's members-only health and wellness experience.

Renew by UnitedHealthcare encourages and inspires people to take an active role in their health and happiness through a variety of resources including recipes, videos, quizzes, educational courses, interactive health tools and tips to infuse more positivity into their day. People can earn rewards through Renew for making healthy choices and completing certain health care activities.

UnitedHealthcare is the exclusive provider of AARP-branded Medicare plans. The company serves one in five Medicare beneficiaries nationwide: nearly 4.8 million people through Medicare Advantage plans, more than 4.7 million people through stand-alone Part D prescription drug plans, and more than 4.5 million people through Medicare supplement plans. More people have chosen UnitedHealthcare for their Medicare coverage than any other company.

For more information about Renew Active, visit www.MyRenewActive.com.

About UnitedHealthcare

UnitedHealthcare is dedicated to helping people live healthier lives and making the health system work better for everyone by simplifying the health care experience, meeting consumer health and wellness needs, and sustaining trusted relationships with care providers. In the United States, UnitedHealthcare offers the full spectrum of health benefit programs for individuals, employers, and Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, and contracts directly with more than 1.2 million physicians and care professionals, and 6,500 hospitals and other care facilities nationwide. The company also provides health benefits and delivers care to people through owned and operated health care facilities in South America. UnitedHealthcare is one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group UNH, a diversified health care company. For more information, visit UnitedHealthcare at www.uhc.com or follow @UHC on Twitter.

Plans are insured through UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company or one of its affiliated companies. For Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Plans: A Medicare Advantage organization with a Medicare contract and a Medicare-approved Part D sponsor. Enrollment in these plans depends on the plan's contract renewal with Medicare. UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company pays royalty fees to AARP for the use of its intellectual property. These fees are used for the general purposes of AARP. You do not need to be an AARP member to enroll in a Medicare Advantage or Prescription Drug Plan. AARP and its affiliates are not insurers. AARP encourages you to consider your needs when selecting products and does not make specific product recommendations for individuals.

Participation in the Renew Active™ by UnitedHealthcare program is voluntary. Consult your doctor prior to beginning an exercise program or making changes to your lifestyle or health care routine. Equipment and classes may vary by location. Services, including equipment, classes, personalized fitness plans provided by fitness centers, and brain activities provided by BrainHQ, are provided by third parties not affiliated with AARP or UnitedHealthcare. AARP and UnitedHealthcare do not endorse and are not responsible for the services or information provided by this program. Availability of the Renew Active™ program varies by plan/area.

Renew by UnitedHealthcare is not available in all plans.

Other providers are available in our network.

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