Latest news with #DOJ
CTV News
21 minutes ago
- Business
- CTV News
UnitedHealth says it is under a U.S. federal investigation and co-operating
The logo for UnitedHealth Group appears above a trading post on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Richard Drew) Shares of UnitedHealth Group slipped Thursday after the health care giant said it was under a U.S. Department of Justice investigation. The company said it has started complying with both criminal and civil requests from federal investigators and it was cooperating with them. '(UnitedHealth) has a long record of responsible conduct and effective compliance,' the company said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. Earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal said federal officials had launched a civil fraud investigation into how the company records diagnoses that lead to extra payments for its Medicare Advantage, or MA, plans. Those are privately run versions of the government's Medicare coverage program mostly for people ages 65 and over. The company's UnitedHealthcare business covers more than 8 million people as the nation's largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans. The business has been under pressure in recent quarters due to rising care use and rate cuts. The Journal said in February, citing anonymous sources, that the probe focused on billing practices in recent months. The paper then said earlier this month that a federal criminal health care-fraud unit was investigating how the company used doctors and nurses to gather diagnoses that bolster payments. UnitedHealth Group Inc. said that it reached out to the Justice Department 'after reviewing media reports about investigations into certain aspects of the company's participation in the Medicare program.' UnitedHealth runs one of the nation's largest health insurance and pharmacy benefits management businesses. It also operates a growing Optum business that provides care and technology support. UnitedHealth raked in more than US$400 billion in revenue last year as the third-largest company in the Fortune 500. Last year, its share price topped $630 to reach a new all-time high. But company shares have mostly shed value since December, when UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot in midtown Manhattan on his way to the company's annual investor meeting. A 26-year-old suspect, Luigi Mangione, has been charged in connection with the shooting. In April, shares plunged after the company cut its forecast due to a spike in health care use. A month later, former CEO Andrew Witty resigned and the company withdrew its forecast. The stock price slipped another 2%, or $5.12, to $287.39 Thursday morning. That represents a 54% drop from its all-time high. UnitedHealth will report its second-quarter results next Tuesday. Tom Murphy, The Associated Press
The Hill
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Hill
DOJ told Trump his name appeared in Epstein files, WSJ reports
Robby Soave and Lindsey Granger discuss a Wall Street Journal report suggesting that the DOJ allegedly told President Trump months ago that his name is among many in the Epstein Files.
CTV News
an hour ago
- Politics
- CTV News
Top U.S. DOJ official to meet with Ghislaine Maxwell on Thursday
Ghislaine Maxwell attends VIP Evening of Conversation for Women's Brain Health Initiative, Moderated by Tina Brown at Spring Studios on October 18, 2016 in New York City. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche is expected to meet with Ghislaine Maxwell on July 24. (Sylvain Gaboury/via CNN Newsource) U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche is expected to meet with Ghislaine Maxwell on Thursday, two people familiar with the meeting tell CNN, as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to face backlash over the Jeffrey Epstein saga. They will meet at the U.S. attorney's office in Tallahassee, according to a person familiar with the plans. The meeting comes after the Department of Justice said earlier this week it had reached out to Epstein's former associate, with Blanche saying in a statement on Tuesday that if 'Ghislane Maxwell has information about anyone who has committed crimes against victims, the FBI and the DOJ will hear what she has to say.' It comes as many of Trump's supporters have demanded the release of more information about the accused sex trafficker alongside growing concerns for transparency among Republicans on Capitol Hill. The U.S. House Oversight subcommittee voted Wednesday to subpoena the DOJ for files related to Epstein in a surprise move amounting to a show of defiance by some House Republicans against Speaker Mike Johnson. Johnson has attempted to tamp down on efforts to push the release of the so-called Epstein files and shut the door on the possibility of a House vote on releasing information on Epstein before the August recess. The subpoena calls for the Epstein files in the U.S. Justice Department's possession to be provided to Congress, but for the names of the victims to be redacted. It also calls for communications between former Biden officials and the Justice Department related to the Epstein matter, in addition to depositions among some major figures, including Bill and Hillary Clinton and former FBI director James Comey. Last week, the Justice Department asked a federal judge to make public years-old grand jury testimony against Epstein, though a Florida federal judge on Wednesday declined to release additional grand jury documents from the criminal investigation into Epstein. Separately, a different federal judge rejected Maxwell's lawyers' request to view grand jury material as he weighs whether to release it publicly. Lawyers for Maxwell had asked the judge to allow them access to the transcripts before they officially state their position on the requested unsealing. The judge said there is 'no compelling necessity' for Maxwell to review the grand jury transcripts prior to submitting their position on whether they should be unsealed. He said if, once he reviews the transcripts, he believes it would benefit Maxwell's lawyers to see portions of them he may make an excerpt of them available. Maxwell was sentenced in 2022 to 20 years in federal prison for carrying out a years-long scheme with Epstein to groom and sexually abuse underage girls. She has continued to appeal her conviction. Kaitlan Collins, Shania Shelton, CNN CNN's Kara Scannell, Annie Grayer and Hannah Rabinowitz contributed to this report.
The Hill
an hour ago
- Politics
- The Hill
Fired Jan. 6 prosecutor plans to sue Trump administration
A fired federal prosecutor said Wednesday he is planning to sue the Trump administration over his alleged wrongful termination. Mike Gordon, a former assistant U.S. attorney, said he was removed without warning or cause after prosecuting dozens of Jan. 6 rioters. President Trump pardoned many people convicted of crimes related to Jan. 6 after taking office. He has also sought to overhaul the Department of Justice, arguing it was politicized under Democratic administrations. But critics say his administration's actions have politicized DOJ, and Gordon said his dismissal was unjust. 'I pursued cases against January 6 rioters, because what they did, not because who they supported,' Gordon told WFLA, a Nexstar affiliate. 'Because they assaulted police officers, not because who they voted for,' he added. Gordon lost his Tampa based job with the Middle District of Florida after receiving a letter from Attorney General Pam Bondi citing the power of the president outlined in Article II of the Constitution. 'The law requires that the government cannot fire a federal prosecutor without first giving warning and then giving a justification, a reason, merit-based reason for firing,' Gordon said in an interview with WFLA. 'They didn't do any of that with me,' he added. Lowell & Associates has agreed to represent Gordon as a plaintiff in the lawsuit and said additional former DOJ employees will join a legal battle set to be filed later this week. The Justice Department did not immediately respond to The Hill's request for comment on the matter. 'When that independence is compromised, justice itself is at risk. This case isn't about one prosecutor's career, but the integrity of our legal system,' Abbe David Lowell of Lowell & Associates told WFLA. 'Mike Gordon was a distinguished prosecutor whose public service included convicting violent gang members, Jan. 6 rioters who stormed the Capitol and fraudsters who preyed on people with disabilities. He followed the law, not politics, and was fired for it.'
an hour ago
- Business
UnitedHealth under federal investigation, company says in filing
UnitedHealth Group faces a criminal and civil investigation from the Department of Justice, the company disclosed on Thursday. The company in an SEC filing said it was complying with the requests from the DOJ. UnitedHealth said it reached out "proactively" to the DOJ after media reports about a probe into its Medicare practices. "The Company has now begun complying with formal criminal and civil requests from the Department. The Company has full confidence in its practices and is committed to working cooperatively with the Department throughout this process," UnitedHealth said. UnitedHealth's announcement that it faces a federal investigation adds to an increasingly tumultuous year for the country's largest healthcare company. The company was thrown into the spotlight after last year's fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in New York, sparking a national conversation about frustrations with healthcare companies. UnitedHealth Group's CEO abruptly left the company in May, and the company's stock price plunged following a series of reports in The Wall Street Journal about civil and criminal probes into the company. The WSJ reported in May that the DOJ's healthcare-fraud unit was investigating possible Medicare fraud at the company, adding to investigations of potential antitrust violations and its Medicare billing practices. The company was the worst performer on the Dow Jones Industrial Average during the first half of 2025. Its stock price declined by 1.5 percent in morning trading following the announcement. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, UnitedHealth said it has "full confidence" in its practices. It added that a court-appointed monitor found no wrongdoing after a decade-long probe into its Medicare Advantage business. "The Company is committed to maintaining the integrity of its business practices and serving as reliable stewards of American tax dollars," UnitedHealth said.
