Ripple Effect Of UnitedHealth's Cyberattack - Healthcare Providers Grapple With Treatment Halts and Staff Payment Woes

In the aftermath of the ransomware attack on UnitedHealthGroup Inc’s UNH Change Healthcare unit, the repercussions are reaching critical levels, forcing healthcare providers to either halt patient treatment or cease paying their staff.

In response to the recent cyberattack, the American Medical Association (AMA) has called upon the Biden Administration to release emergency funds to support physicians grappling with the aftermath. 

Hackers affiliated with the ‘Blackcat’ ransomware gang were responsible for the ongoing outage at UnitedHealth’s technology unit, causing significant disruptions to prescription deliveries for the past six days.

On Tuesday, the government announced plans to pressure its Medicare contractors to offer more flexible payment terms in light of the growing crisis. 

According to Mel Davies, Chief Financial Officer of Oregon Specialty Group, an independent practice treating over 16,000 patients, the situation is escalating into an impending disaster. The practice, which specializes in cancer, infectious disease, and autoimmune conditions, is struggling to sustain daily costs ranging from $500,000 to $1 million for chemotherapy and other intravenous drugs.

“If this doesn’t get fixed, we can’t treat patients because we won’t have the money to pay for labor to even keep our doors open,” Mel Davies said.

Despite UnitedHealth’s assurance that 90% of claims are now being processed, challenges persist for some providers who cannot submit claims or receive payment. 

The company anticipates a full restoration of claims technology only after reinstating its pharmacy services connection, which is targeted for Thursday, Reuters noted.

Meanwhile, healthcare professionals are exploring various avenues to offset the financial strain. 

Ted Okon, Executive Director of the Community Oncology Alliance, emphasizes the hindrance caused by the hack in obtaining prior authorizations for expensive treatments, causing significant delays. 

Price Action: UNH shares are down 0.29% at $471.77 on the last check Wednesday.

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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