Morale is in the toilet, it takes teams 10x as long to build anything meaningful in tech. No good requirements from business to even build anything. We continue to invest in things that are failing or aren't even thought through. It's just been a bunch of 32 plus managers trying to meet their goals to get big bonuses by being yes men and not innovating anything, laying people off to pretend to have profitability. Now we are seeing the fallout from these decisions. Optum used to be a company I was proud to say I worked for. But I have little faith, even my own manager is having a hard time getting us motivated. Fear will only motivate the masses for so long. Then people stop caring. The Indians are not gonna put up with this either, Optum is one of the lower paying employers in India too and they all know it. What IS the long term plan guys? Do you all think past the next earnings report? Because these decisions are not made by a company who is seeking long term financial gains. Good strong companies treat their employees like gold, not trash. The job market will change, the Indians will go to Humana or some other healthcare company that treats them with respect, and the Americans will be done with you. My advice? Invest in your long term employees. Especially considering that many of us have so much domain expertise that will put your systems in harm's way if you lose us.
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@n0 I mean idk if you know this but Epic as a software platform is just that: a piece of software that has to run somewhere. They outsource all their infrastructure and networking maintenance to whoever can host medical data safely and is local to them in Wisconsin. ie, UHG/Optum is their backend anyway lol
@cx 100% agree. When Epic releases a solid module, it’s not uncommon for its customers to switch to that. They might initially forgo a switch and keep using the previous non-Epic solution IF Epic’s doesn’t meet their needs. But once Epic fills those gaps, hesitant customers will switch as well.
I don’t know about blockchain but I can guarantee they won’t see much market traction with OptumReal if epic bakes it directly into software the providers already have. UHC can refuse to integrate but then the slow fade continues.
Was going to say yes, but SH sounded WAY out of touch. Time to snowbird in FL, soak up his UHG-funded concierge medicine, complain about traffic, and micromanage the he-l out of a few nonprofit boards. Leave something as important as healthcare to the next generation.
@cc Has anyone asked what happens when Epic launches their version of Optum Real for FREE? Then partner with a blockchain company to handle payments instantly via stablecoins vs Optum Real which doesn't actually speed up reimbursement speed for the vast majority of claims?
Does UHC protest? Does UHC join to keep market share and throw Optum under the bus? Or, do we sell Optum before the release?
It's been borrowed time since ACA. While there are some 32+ True Believers® and wide representation in the rank and file, many (most?) in leadership secretly know.
Guess what? Despite a recently bloated government affairs office whose ignorance is second only to Candyman, social program spending isn't coming back (bye MA and Medicaid cash cows). Very good chance ACA preventive coverage requirements will be repealed (bye high margin UHC commercial plans). Chance they repeal the Reagan rule forcing hospitals to treat indignant emergency cases. The payer industry is poised to be replaced with AI and blockchain (bye OptumReal and OFS).
UHG exists to maintain the HMO that Steve Built, we're coasting on fumes and SLT/ELT will cash bonus checks and sell vested shares.
Hope is enough layoffs to sell Optum in parts at a premium before MSFT/EPIC launch their "here's how you eliminate Payers and lower the cost of healthcare" partnership in 2026.
In my experience the management whose responsibility it would be to report that offshoring is having catastrophic results are so scared for their own jobs that they just lie and fudge what they can. Then berate their team for low survey scores