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Basis of Presentation, Uses of Estimates and Significant Accounting Policies (Notes) | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2024
Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies [Text Block] | Basis of Presentation, Use of Estimates and Significant Accounting Policies Basis of Presentation The Company has prepared the Consolidated Financial Statements according to U.S. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and has included the accounts of UnitedHealth Group and its subsidiaries. Use of Estimates These Consolidated Financial Statements include certain amounts based on the Company’s best estimates and judgments. The Company’s most significant estimates relate to estimates and judgments for medical costs payable and goodwill. Certain of these estimates require the application of complex assumptions and judgments, often because they involve matters inherently uncertain and will likely change in subsequent periods. The impact of any change in estimates is included in earnings in the period in which the estimate is adjusted. Revenues Premiums Premium revenues are primarily derived from risk-based arrangements in which the premium is typically at a fixed rate per individual served for a one-year period, and the Company assumes the economic risk of funding its customers’ health care and related administrative costs. Premium revenues are recognized in the period in which eligible individuals are entitled to receive health care benefits. Health care premium payments received from the Company’s customers in advance of the service period are recorded as unearned revenues. Fully insured commercial products of U.S. health plans, Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit (Medicare Part D) plans with medical loss ratios (MLRs) as calculated under the definitions in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) and related federal and state regulations and implementing regulation, falling below certain targets are required to rebate ratable portions of their premiums annually. Commercial premiums within the Company’s individual and small group markets are also subject to the ACA risk adjustment program. Medicare Advantage premium revenue includes the impact of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) quality bonuses based on plans’ Star rating. Certain of the Company’s Medicaid business is also subject to state minimum MLR rebates. Premium revenues are recognized based on the estimated premiums earned, net of projected rebates, because the Company is able to reasonably estimate the ultimate premiums of these contracts. The Company also records premium revenues for certain value-based arrangements at its Optum Health care delivery businesses. Under these value-based arrangements, the Company enters into agreements with health plans to stand ready to deliver, integrate, direct and control certain health care services for patients. In exchange, the Company receives a premium that is typically paid on a per-patient per-month basis. The Company considers these value-based arrangements to represent a single performance obligation where premium revenues are recognized in the period in which health care services are made available. The Company’s Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D premium revenues are subject to periodic adjustment under CMS’ risk adjustment payment methodology. CMS deploys a risk adjustment model which apportions premiums paid to all health plans according to health severity and certain demographic factors. The CMS risk adjustment model provides higher per member payments for enrollees diagnosed with certain conditions and lower payments for enrollees who are healthier. Under this risk adjustment methodology, CMS calculates the risk adjusted premium payment using diagnosis and encounter data from hospital inpatient, hospital outpatient and physician treatment settings. The Company and health care providers collect, capture and submit the necessary and available data to CMS within prescribed deadlines. The Company estimates risk adjustment premium revenues based upon the data submitted and expected to be submitted to CMS. Risk adjustment data for the Company’s plans are subject to review by the government, including audit by regulators. See Note 12 for additional information regarding these audits. Products and Services For the Company’s Optum Rx pharmacy care services business, the majority of revenues are derived from products sold through a contracted network of retail pharmacies or home delivery, specialty and community health pharmacies. Product revenues include the cost of pharmaceuticals (net of rebates), a negotiated dispensing fee and customer co-payments. Pharmacy products are billed to customers based on the number of transactions occurring during the billing period. Product revenues are recognized when the prescriptions are dispensed. The Company has entered into contracts in which it is primarily obligated to pay its network pharmacy providers for benefits provided to their customers regardless of whether the Company is paid. The Company is also involved in establishing the prices charged by retail pharmacies, determining which drugs will be included in formulary listings and selecting which retail pharmacies will be included in the network offered to plan sponsors’ members and accordingly, product revenues are reported on a gross basis. Services revenue includes a number of services and products sold through Optum. Optum Health’s service revenues include net patient service revenues recorded based upon established billing rates, less allowances for contractual adjustments, and are recognized as services are provided. For its financial services offerings, Optum Health charges fees and earns investment income on managed funds. Optum Insight provides software and information products, advisory consulting arrangements and managed services outsourcing contracts, which may be delivered over several years. Optum Insight revenues are generally recognized over time and measured for each period based on the progress to date as services are performed or made available to customers. Services revenue also consists of fees derived from services performed for customers who self-insure the health care costs of their employees and employees’ dependents. Under service fee contracts, the Company receives a monthly fixed fee per employee, which is recognized as revenue as the Company performs, or makes available, the applicable services to the customer. The customers retain the risk of financing health care costs for their employees and employees’ dependents, and the Company administers the payment of customer funds to physicians and other health care professionals from customer-funded bank accounts. As the Company has neither the obligation for funding the health care costs, nor the primary responsibility for providing the medical care, the Company does not recognize premium revenue and medical costs for these contracts in its Consolidated Financial Statements. For these fee-based customer arrangements, the Company provides coordination and facilitation of medical services; transaction processing; customer, consumer and care professional services; and access to contracted networks of physicians, hospitals and other health care professionals. These services are performed throughout the contract period. As of December 31, 2024 and 2023, accounts receivables related to products and services were $9.9 billion and $8.6 billion, respectively. In 2024 and 2023, the Company had no material bad-debt expense and there were no material contract assets, contract liabilities or deferred contract costs recorded on the Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2024 or 2023. For the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022, revenue recognized from performance obligations related to prior periods (for example, due to changes in transaction price) was not material. As of December 31, 2024, revenue expected to be recognized in any future year related to remaining performance obligations, excluding revenue pertaining to contracts having an original expected duration of one year or less, contracts where revenue is recognized as invoiced and contracts with variable consideration related to undelivered performance obligations, was $12.7 billion, of which approximately half is expected to be recognized in the next three years. See Note 14 for disaggregation of revenue by segment and type. Medical Costs and Medical Costs Payable The Company’s estimate of medical costs payable represents management’s best estimate of its liability for unpaid medical costs as of December 31, 2024. Each period, the Company re-examines previously established medical costs payable estimates based on actual claim submissions and other changes in facts and circumstances. As more complete claim information becomes available, the Company adjusts the amount of the estimates and includes the changes in estimates in medical costs in the period in which the change is identified. Approximately 90% of claims related to medical care services are known and settled within 90 days from the date of service and substantially all within twelve months. Medical costs and medical costs payable include estimates of the Company’s obligations for medical care services rendered on behalf of consumers, but for which claims have either not yet been received, processed, or paid. The Company develops estimates for medical care services incurred but not reported (IBNR), which includes estimates for claims which have not been received or fully processed, using an actuarial process consistently applied, centrally controlled and automated. The actuarial models consider factors such as time from date of service to claim processing, seasonal variances in medical care consumption, health care professional contract rate changes, care activity and other medical cost trends, membership volume and demographics, the introduction of new technologies, benefit plan changes and business mix changes related to products, customers and geography. In developing its medical costs payable estimates, the Company applies different estimation methods depending on which incurred claims are being estimated. For the most recent two months, the Company estimates claim costs incurred by applying observed medical cost trend factors to the average per member per month medical costs incurred in prior months for which more complete claim data are available, supplemented by a review of near-term completion factors (actuarial estimates, based upon historical experience and analysis of current trends, of the percentage of incurred claims during a given period adjudicated by the Company at the date of estimation). For months prior to the most recent two months, the Company applies the completion factors to actual claims adjudicated-to-date to estimate the expected amount of ultimate incurred claims for those months. Cost of Products Sold The Company’s cost of products sold includes the cost of pharmaceuticals dispensed to unaffiliated customers either directly at its home delivery, specialty and community pharmacy locations, or indirectly through its nationwide network of participating pharmacies. Rebates attributable to unaffiliated clients are accrued as rebates receivable and a reduction of cost of products sold, with a corresponding payable for the amounts of the rebates to be remitted to those unaffiliated clients in accordance with their contracts and recorded in the Consolidated Statements of Operations as a reduction of product revenue. Cost of products sold also includes the cost of personnel to support the Company’s transaction processing services, system sales, maintenance and professional services. Cash, Cash Equivalents and Investments Cash and cash equivalents are highly liquid investments having an original maturity of three months or less. The fair value of cash and cash equivalents approximates their carrying value because of the short maturity of the instruments. Investments with maturities of less than one year are classified as short-term. Because of regulatory requirements, certain investments are included in long-term investments regardless of their maturity date. The Company classifies these investments as held-to-maturity and reports them at amortized cost. Substantially all other investments are classified as available-for-sale and reported at fair value based on quoted market prices, where available. Equity investments are measured at fair value, with certain exceptions where the Company has elected to measure investments with unobservable inputs at cost, subject to fair value adjustments upon an impairment or a transaction of the same or similar security. Changes in fair value of equity investments are recognized in net earnings. The Company excludes unrealized gains and losses on available-for-sale debt securities from net earnings and reports them as comprehensive income and, net of income tax effects, as a separate component of equity. To calculate realized gains and losses on the sale of debt securities, the Company specifically identifies the cost of each investment sold. The Company evaluates an available-for-sale debt security for credit-related impairment by considering the present value of expected cash flows relative to a security’s amortized cost, the extent to which fair value is less than amortized cost, the financial condition and near-term prospects of the issuer and specific events or circumstances which may influence the operations of the issuer. Credit-related impairments are recorded as an allowance, with an offset to investment and other income. Non-credit related impairments are recorded through other comprehensive income. If the Company intends to sell an impaired security, or will likely be required to sell a security before recovery of the entire amortized cost, the entire impairment is included in net earnings. New information and the passage of time can change these judgments. The Company manages its investment portfolio to limit its exposure to any one issuer or market sector, and largely limits its investments to investment grade quality. Assets Under Management In July 2024, the Company amended its Medicare Supplement Program with a membership organization (the Medicare Supplement Program). The amendments provide the Company the right to use a trade name and other intellectual property in marketing efforts for Medicare Supplement offerings. Amounts previously reported as assets under management are now included within the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheet based upon their classification. For periods prior to the amended Medicare Supplement Program, the Company excluded the effects of certain balance sheet amounts in its Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows, while these effects are included for periods after the amendments. Other Current Receivables Other current receivables include amounts due from pharmaceutical manufacturers for rebates and Medicare Part D drug discounts, loans to care providers in response to the Change Healthcare cyberattack, accrued interest and other miscellaneous amounts due to the Company. The Company’s pharmacy care services businesses contract with pharmaceutical manufacturers, some of which provide rebates based on use of the manufacturers’ products by its affiliated and unaffiliated clients. The Company accrues rebates as they are earned by its clients on a monthly basis based on the terms of the applicable contracts, historical data and current estimates. The pharmacy care services businesses bill these rebates to the manufacturers on a monthly or quarterly basis depending on the contractual terms and record rebates attributable to affiliated clients as a reduction to medical costs. The Company generally receives rebates two to five months after billing. As of December 31, 2024 and 2023, total pharmaceutical manufacturer rebates receivable included in other receivables in the Consolidated Balance Sheets amounted to $12.5 billion and $11.0 billion, respectively. Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets Prepaid expenses and other current assets included pharmaceutical drug and supplies inventory of $3.8 billion and $2.8 billion as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Property, Equipment and Capitalized Software Property, equipment and capitalized software are stated at cost, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization. Capitalized software consists of certain costs incurred in the development of internal-use software, including external direct costs of materials and services and applicable payroll costs of employees devoted to specific software development. The Company calculates depreciation and amortization using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets. The useful lives for property, equipment and capitalized software are:
Furniture, fixtures and equipment | 3 to 10 years
Buildings | 35 to 40 years
Capitalized software | 3 to 5 years
Leasehold improvements are depreciated over the shorter of the remaining lease term or their estimated useful economic life. Operating Leases The Company leases facilities and equipment under long-term operating leases which are non-cancelable and expire on various dates. At the lease commencement date, lease right-of-use (ROU) assets and lease liabilities are recognized based on the present value of the future minimum lease payments over the lease term, which includes all fixed obligations arising from the lease contract. If an interest rate is not implicit in a lease, the Company utilizes its incremental borrowing rate for a period closely matching the lease term. The Company’s ROU assets are included in other assets, and lease liabilities are included in other current liabilities and other liabilities in the Company’s Consolidated Balance Sheet. Goodwill To determine whether goodwill is impaired, annually or more frequently if needed, the Company performs impairment tests. The Company may first assess qualitative factors to determine if it is more likely than not the carrying value of a reporting unit exceeds its estimated fair value. If our qualitative assessment indicates a goodwill impairment is more likely than not, we perform additional quantitative analyses. The Company may also elect to skip the qualitative testing and proceed directly to the quantitative testing. When performing quantitative testing, the Company first estimates the fair values of its reporting units using discounted cash flows. To determine fair values, the Company must make assumptions about a wide variety of internal and external factors. Significant assumptions used in the impairment analysis include financial projections of free cash flow (including significant assumptions about operations, capital levels and income taxes), long-term growth rates for determining terminal value and discount rates. Comparative market multiples are used to corroborate the results of the discounted cash flow test. If the fair value is less than the carrying value of the reporting unit, an impairment is recognized for the difference, up to the carrying amount of goodwill. There was no impairment of goodwill during the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022. Intangible Assets The Company’s finite-lived intangible assets are subject to impairment tests when events or circumstances indicate an intangible asset (or asset group) may be impaired. The Company’s indefinite-lived intangible assets are also tested for impairment annually. There was no impairment of intangible assets during the years ended December 31, 2024, 2023 and 2022. Other Current Liabilities Other current liabilities include health savings account deposits ($13.7 billion and $13.5 billion as of December 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively), accruals for premium rebates payable, the current portion of future policy benefits and customer balances. Policy Acquisition Costs The Company’s short duration health insurance contracts typically have a one-year term and may be canceled by the customer with at least 30 days’ notice. Costs related to the acquisition and renewal of short duration customer contracts are primarily charged to expense as incurred. Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests Redeemable noncontrolling interests in the Company’s subsidiaries whose redemption is outside of the Company’s control are classified as temporary equity. These interests primarily relate to put options on unowned shares, which are typically redeemable at fair value after a certain time period. The Company accretes changes in the redemption value to the earliest redemption date utilizing the interest method. If all interests were currently redeemable, the difference between the carrying value and the estimated redemption value is not material. The following table provides details of the Company's redeemable noncontrolling interests’ activity for the years ended December 31, 2024 and 2023:
(in millions) |  | 2024 |  | 2023
Redeemable noncontrolling interests, beginning of period |  | $ | 4,498 |  |  | $ | 4,897 |
Net earnings |  | 174 |  |  | 188 |
Acquisitions |  | 33 |  |  | 122 |
Redemptions |  | (280) |  |  | (730) |
Distributions |  | (125) |  |  | (144) |
Fair value and other adjustments |  | 23 |  |  | 165 |
Redeemable noncontrolling interests, end of period |  | $ | 4,323 |  |  | $ | 4,498 |
Share-Based Compensation The Company recognizes compensation expense for share-based awards, including stock options and restricted stock and restricted stock units (collectively, restricted shares), on a straight-line basis over the related service period (generally the vesting period) of the award, or to an employee’s eligible retirement date under the award agreement, if earlier. Restricted shares vest ratably, primarily over four years, and compensation expense related to restricted shares is based on the share price on the date of grant. Stock options vest ratably primarily over four years and may be exercised up to 10 years from the date of grant. Compensation expense related to stock options is based on the fair value at the date of grant, which is estimated on the date of grant using a binomial option-pricing model. Under the Company’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP), eligible employees are allowed to purchase the Company’s stock at a discounted price, which is 90% of the market price of the Company’s common stock at the end of the six-month purchase period. Share-based compensation expense for all programs is recognized in operating costs in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Net Earnings Per Common Share The Company computes basic earnings per common share attributable to UnitedHealth Group common shareholders by dividing net earnings attributable to UnitedHealth Group common shareholders by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period. The Company determines diluted net earnings per common share attributable to UnitedHealth Group common shareholders using the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period, adjusted for potentially dilutive shares associated with stock options, restricted shares and the ESPP (collectively, common stock equivalents), using the treasury stock method. The treasury stock method assumes a hypothetical issuance of shares to settle the share-based awards, with the assumed proceeds used to purchase common stock at the average market price for the period. Assumed proceeds include the amount the employee must pay upon exercise and the average unrecognized compensation cost. The difference between the number of shares assumed issued and number of shares assumed purchased represents the dilutive shares.

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