UnitedHealth Group (UNH)

If we fail to compete effectively to maintain or increase our market share, including maintaining or increasing enrollments in businesses providing health benefits, our results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

Our businesses compete throughout the United States and face competition in all of the geographic markets in which we operate. We compete with other companies on the basis of many factors, including price of benefits offered and cost and risk of alternatives, location and choice of health care providers, quality of customer service, comprehensiveness of coverage offered, reputation for quality care, financial stability and diversity of product offerings. For our Health Care Services reporting segment, competitors include Aetna Inc., Cigna Corporation, Coventry Health Care, Inc., Health Net, Inc., Humana Inc., Kaiser Permanente, WellPoint, Inc., numerous for-profit and not-for-profit organizations operating under licenses from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and other enterprises that serve more limited geographic areas or market segments such as Medicare specialty services. For our Prescription Solutions business, competitors include Medco Health Solutions, Inc., CVS/ Caremark Corporation and Express Scripts, Inc. Our OptumHealth and Ingenix reporting segments also compete with a number of other businesses.

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We believe that barriers to entry in many markets are not substantial, so the addition of new competitors can occur relatively easily, and customers enjoy significant flexibility in moving between competitors. In particular markets, competitors may have capabilities or resources that give them a competitive advantage. Greater market share, established reputation, superior supplier or health care professional arrangements, existing business relationships, and other factors all can provide a competitive advantage to our businesses or to their competitors.

In addition, significant merger and acquisition activity has occurred in the industries in which we operate, both as to our competitors and suppliers (including hospitals, physician groups and other care professionals) in these industries. Consolidation may make it more difficult for us to retain or increase customers, to improve the terms on which we do business with our suppliers, or to maintain or advance profitability. If we do not compete effectively in our markets, if we set rates too high or too low in highly competitive markets, if we do not design and price our products properly and competitively, if we do not provide a satisfactory level of services, if membership or demand for other services does not increase as we expect, if membership or demand for other services declines, or if we lose accounts with more profitable products while retaining or increasing membership in accounts with less profitable products, our business and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

If we fail to compete effectively to maintain or increase our market share, including maintaining or increasing enrollments in businesses providing health benefits, our results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

Our businesses compete throughout the United States and face competition in all of the geographic markets in which we operate. For our Health Care Services segment, competitors include Aetna Inc., Cigna Corporation, Coventry Health Care, Inc., Health Net, Inc., Humana Inc., Kaiser Permanente, WellPoint, Inc., numerous for-profit and not-for-profit organizations operating under licenses from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and other enterprises that serve more limited geographic areas or market segments such as Medicare specialty services. For our Prescription Solutions business, competitors include Medco Health Solutions, Inc., CVS/Caremark Corporation and Express Scripts, Inc. Our OptumHealth and Ingenix business segments also compete with a number of other businesses. The addition of new competitors can occur relatively easily, and customers enjoy significant flexibility in moving between competitors. In particular markets, competitors may have capabilities or resources that give them a competitive advantage. Greater market share, established reputation, superior supplier or health care professional arrangements, existing business relationships, and other factors all can provide a competitive advantage to our businesses or to their competitors. In addition, significant merger and acquisition activity has occurred in the industries in which we operate, both as to our competitors and suppliers (including hospitals, physician groups and other care professionals) in these industries. Consolidation may make it more difficult for us to retain or increase customers, to improve the terms on which we do business with our suppliers, or to maintain or advance profitability. If we do not complete effectively in our markets, if we set rates too high or too low in highly competitive markets, if we do not provide a satisfactory level of services, if membership does not increase as we expect, if membership declines, or if we lose accounts with more profitable products while retaining or increasing membership in accounts with less profitable products, our business and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.