UnitedHealth buying Medicare advantage plan with chronically ill specialty

Bloomberg: UnitedHealth Agrees To Acquire Medicare Managed-Care Insurer XLHealth
UnitedHealth Group Inc. (UNH), the largest U.S. health insurer by sales, said it will buy XLHealth Corp., a provider of managed care for chronically ill Medicare members, to strengthen a growth area likely to gain increasing support from the U.S. government as it trims costs. The purchase price was about $2 billion, according to a person familiar with the deal who asked not to be identified because the price wasn't disclosed. … The purchase of XLHealth, with 111,000 members, is the seventh since Jan. 1 involving companies that manage Medicare coverage (Wechsler, 11/22).

The Baltimore Sun: UnitedHealthcare To Buy Local Firm For Undisclosed Amount
The health insurance giant UnitedHealthcare plans to acquire Baltimore-based XLHealth Corp., bolstering the company's portfolio of Medicare Advantage plans. The plans focus on Medicare recipients with chronic illnesses or other special needs. XLHealth's Care Improvement Plus plan focuses on the underserved. XLHealth, currently owned by management and affiliates of MatlinPatterson Global Opportunities Partners III LP, now serves about 113,000 Medicare Advantage members in Maryland and five other states and plans to expand to six more states next year (Cohn, 11/22).

Minneapolis Star Tribune: United Deal To Bolster Medicare Advantage
UnitedHealth Group Inc. bolstered its position as the largest provider of Medicare Advantage insurance Tuesday with the announcement that it would acquire special-needs insurer XLHealth Corp. … UnitedHealth already leads the nation in the provision of Medicare Advantage, which is private insurance approved by the government to offer care to Americans 65 and older who meet certain criteria (Spencer, 11/22).