UnitedHealth Group reported only 10 subsidiaries in its U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings for 2025, down from thousands in 2024.
UnitedHealth has been embracing expansion — and not just in 2025. For example, in 2022, UnitedHealth overcame Department of Justice antitrust concerns and was approved to acquire claims clearinghouse Change Healthcare for $7.8 billion. That momentum continued in 2025, which included the acquisition of home health and hospice provider Amedisys. While UnitedHealth did offload some of its business last year, the reporting cliff, compared to previous years, is still steep.
“UnitedHealth Group is focused on making it easier for investors to understand the core pillars of our business and has updated its Exhibit 21 to better align with the SEC’s ‘significant subsidiary’ definition,” a statement from UnitedHealth shared with Becker’s said. “We are committed to providing investors with clear and decision-useful information.”
The SEC outlined its “significant subsidiary” definition in 2020, going into effect in 2021. Tests to determine whether a firm is a significant subsidiary include investment in that business, its assets and its income, all compared to the parent company. With a company as large as UnitedHealth, not all subsidiaries would meet the disclosure threshold.
In reviewing 2020 and 2025 earnings reports, though, Elevance Health, Humana and Centene Corp. still reported more subsidiaries than UnitedHealth did in 2025.
In December, the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility — a group of faith- and values-based investors — urged UnitedHealth to report on the “healthcare consequences” of its acquisitions, as well.
In recent months, UnitedHealth has been at the center of vertical integration critiques. UnitedHealth Group CEO Stephen Hemsley was among a handful of insurer executives who faced congressional questioning in January.
“Whether you’re a blue-blooded capitalist or a card-carrying democratic socialist, I think corporate monopolies are a problem, and this vertical integration is destroying people’s ability to access care,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., said during Jan. 22 House hearings on industry consolidation, prior authorization practices and executive pay. That afternoon, Rep. Gregory Murphy, MD, R-N.C., said he would “turn all of you guys into dust” as he called for the break-up of the for-profit health insurance landscape.
During the hearing, Mr. Hemsley backed his company’s efforts, saying it has “a very substantial value dynamic” due to stronger care coordination and data use.
Building on lawmaker scrutiny, Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Josh Hawley, R-Mo., pitched legislation in February that would destabilize vertical integration.
UnitedHealth had commissioned independent reviews, releasing findings in December 2025, following CEO Stephen Hemsley’s commitment to furthering transparency.
