BUZZ-Health insurers rise after US proposes 2026 payment rates

Updated prices to regular trading session

Health insurance companies were rallying on Monday after the U.S. government on Friday proposed 2026 reimbursement rates for Medicare Advantage plans run by private insurers that will result in a 2.2% increase in payments, vs 0.2% decline last year

Shares of insurers such as UnitedHealth Group UNH.N up 4.4%, CVS Health Corp CVS.N up ~6.9% and Humana HUM.N up 7.7%, leading gains in the S&P 500 health care index .SPXHC, up 1.2% on the day

Shares in Elevance Health ELV.N up 4% on Monday, hitting their highest level since Dec. 10

The government payment rate affects how much insurers charge for monthly premiums, which plan benefits they offer and ultimately, how much they can profit

Brokerage Leerink says the proposed rate is "better than feared" given the early publication from the Biden administration

Leerink says the final rate is typically 1% better than the advanced notice

The final rate announcement will be published on or before April 7, 2025

YTD UNH up 7.5% after falling 3.9% in 2024, CVS up 14.5% after a 43% drop last year, while HUM shares up 13.8% YTD after falling 44.6% in 2024

(Reporting by Christy Santhosh, Sinéad Carew)

((Christy.Santhosh@thomsonreuters.com; sinead.carew@thomsonreuters.com, +13322191897;))