#StopUHC
Urgent: We need your help to fight UHC's advance notification policy
Join AGA’s campaign against UnitedHealthcare (UHC), who now requires advance notification for gastroenterology endoscopy services for all commercial plans, regardless of the outpatient location.
AGA’s top priority: Speeding up access to care for patients and reducing administrative burden on practices by reforming prior authorization.
After weeks of protest from AGA and the GI community, UnitedHealthcare shelved the prior authorization policy for GI endoscopy planned to go into effect June 1, but replaced it with a nebulous Advance Notification Program.
This program requires you to provide even more data on top of the current burdensome paperwork requirements. It is a temporary patch – patients will not be denied care immediately, but the downstream effects of the program could be as bad or worse for patient access.
UHC’s new prior authorization policy will impact EGDs, capsule endoscopies, diagnostic colonoscopies and surveillance colonoscopies. These services are critical for the early diagnosis of life-threatening diseases such as colorectal cancer and for monitoring patients’ disease progression.
The policy could cause care delays for high-risk individuals, deter patients from undergoing medically recommended procedures, exacerbate existing sociodemographic disparities in care and outcomes, and add to the growing administrative burden on physicians.
AGA is leading the fight to reverse this burdensome and dangerous policy.
- On May 26, the GI societies met with UHC. Read our statement: UHC offers to trade GI prior auth for a poorly defined alternative.
- At our meeting at DDW®, the AGA Governing Board committed to a sustained fight against UnitedHealthcare on this policy. AGA will continue to work with our sister GI societies, patient advocates, policymakers, media and the broader health care community to push the levers of influence to stop or overturn this policy.
- Over 1,100 AGA members have sent letters to UnitedHealthcare’s CEO decrying the new prior authorization requirements and urging the insurance giant to reverse course for the sake of patient health and safety.
Time is limited before the policy goes into effect.
Below are ways you can help pressure United to rescind its dangerous prior auth policy.
Latest news
- UnitedHealthcare shifts colonoscopy requirements from controversial ‘prior authorization’ to ‘advance notification’ — CNN, June 1, 2023
- UnitedHealthcare nixes prior authorization rule, but docs aren’t happy about what’s replaced it — Fierce Healthcare, June 1, 2023
- UnitedHealth backs off contentious prior authorization plan — Axios, June 1, 2023
- UnitedHealth Ditches Controversial Prior Authorization for GI Procedures for ‘Advance Notification Process’— Managed Healthcare Executive, June 1, 2023
- GI Docs Reject UHC Plan To Replace Prior Auth With Advanced Notification — Inside Health Policy, May 31, 2023
- How UHC’s new prior authorization policy for colonoscopies could make patients wait — Fierce Healthcare (authored by Dr. Barbara Jung), May 26, 2023
- Doctors and patients are worried this large health insurer’s new policy will delay care — USA Today, May 24, 2023
- Gastro Docs Demand United Reverse Prior Auth Changes Set For June 1 — Inside Health Policy, May 23, 2023
- UnitedHealthcare draws fire from docs over new prior authorization policy for colonoscopies — Fierce Healthcare, May 16, 2023
- UnitedHealthcare will soon implement a controversial prior authorization policy for surveillance and diagnostic colonoscopies — Forbes, May 16, 2023
- ‘Stunning’ change to United’s colonoscopy coverage roils physicians and patients — STAT News, May 15, 2023
- Despite last minute change, UnitedHealthcare’s policy for virtually all colonoscopies and endoscopies lays groundwork for delays, disruptions, and denials of life-saving services — June 1, 2023
- GI society statement: UHC offers to trade GI prior auth for a poorly defined alternative — May 26, 2023
- AGA doubles down on prior auth fight with UHC — May 10, 2023
- TIME IS RUNNING OUT: Patients, Physicians Brace for Anticipated Delays, Denials by UnitedHealthcare for Endoscopies Starting 6/1 — May 1, 2023
Bottom line: Patients should have timely access to the care their health care providers deem medically necessary.
For more information
Contact the AGA Government Affairs team: agaadvocacy@gastro.org. Media: contact Rebecca Reid at rreid@schmidtpa.com or 410-212-3843.
