Exits, layoffs and losses: Bright Health Group's troubled 2022

Bloomington, Minn.-based Bright Health Group said on Oct. 11 it is ending its individual and group insurance business. The move comes after a year of challenges, which included layoffs, a fine from a state insurance regulator and hundreds of millions of dollars of reported losses. Here is a timeline of Bright Health's year:   

Jan. 10: Bright Health Group said it is positioned to surpass the 1 million member mark in 2022 between its commercial and Medicare lines. The payer said growth in Florida, North Carolina and Texas during open enrollment fueled the raised outlook. 

Feb. 11: An SEC filing revealed that the CEO of Bright Health Group's payer arm, Bright HealthCare, Simeon Schindelman, would be stepping down effective March 11. 

March 4: The Star Tribune reported that Bright Health Group is laying off 150 employees, totaling 5 percent of its workforce. The company reported losses over the past year despite membership growth. It also reported struggling with risk adjustment woes and processing claims, which resulted in slower payouts to providers. Errors related to loading new patient contacts into its system resulted in the issues, resulting in the need to reprocess claims.

April 8: The Colorado Division of Insurance fined Bright Health $1 million April 8, citing over 100 consumer and provider complaints since 2021 that indicated "systemic operational problems." Those problems include failure to pay provider claims according to Colorado law, failure to communicate with members, an inability to accurately process consumer payments and accounts, and untimely process of claims for physical and behavioral health problems. 

April 14: Bright Health announced it will no longer offer individual and group health plans after this year in Illinois, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah and Virginia. The company said the six states were forecasted to contribute less than 5 percent of its total 2022 revenue and will have little effect on revenues in the future. 

May 4: Bright Health Group reported massive enrollment growth across its commercial, Medicare Advantage and value-based lines, but recorded a net loss of more than $180 million in the quarter ending March 31, according to its first-quarter earnings report.

May 17: Bright Health Group named Michael Carson as CEO of Bright HealthCare and Jeff Cook as CEO of the value-based line NeueHealth. 

Aug. 10: Bright Health Group posted a net loss of nearly $432 million in the first half of the year but saw extreme growth in its NeueHealth value-based membership, which has grown 1,150 percent since the same time last year, according to the company's earnings report.

Aug. 25: The Star Tribune reported that Bright Health Group told Florida regulators there is "substantial doubt" the company can remain financially viable without additional outside investment. The company said in the Florida filing that it has been using reserve funds to cover losses. During the company's second-quarter call, Bright Health CEO Mike Mikan said it had always planned to look for additional outside investment to break even. 

Oct. 11: Bright Health Group announced it is no longer offering individual and family health plans through Bright HealthCare or offer Medicare Advantage plans outside of California. The company also said it has raised $175 million in outside capital to "take the business through profitability," which it expects in 2023. Bright Health will continue to participate in CMS' ACO REACH program and operate its value-based care delivery business, NeueHealth.

Oct. 12: The Colorado Sun reported that Bright Health's announcement affects a major health reform initiative in the state. Bright is the carrier that offers plans for Peak Health Alliance, where members of a community directly negotiate lower prices with hospitals. As Peak's insurance carrier, Bright then bundled those prices into insurance plans for Peak. Anne Ladd, Peak CEO, said the move means Peak will not be able to offer plans in 2023 because there is not enough time to partner with a new insurer.  

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