UnitedHealth Group's pharmacy benefits manager, Optum Rx, announced plans to relax insurance authorization requirements for approximately 80 medications. This initiative aims to reduce paperwork for both patients and healthcare providers. The company indicated that the list of affected prescription drugs could expand over time, potentially eliminating up to 25% of reauthorization requirements, which account for more than 10% of all such pharmacy authorizations.
This decision follows a high-profile incident last December involving the death of a UnitedHealth Group executive, which sparked widespread criticism on social media regarding prior authorization requirements for medication usage by the company and other health insurers. In response, UnitedHealth Group committed to working with policymakers to reduce the frequency of pre-treatment authorizations in its Medicare business, which serves individuals aged 65 and older or those with disabilities.
Despite these changes, UnitedHealth Group emphasizes that reauthorization or certain checks for continued medication use remain necessary for drugs that present safety concerns or require ongoing monitoring to adjust dosages or conduct additional testing.
