Elevance Earnings: Stocks fall as Medicaid members use more care

WStreet’s response was swift Wednesday after Elevance Health said the amount of care its Medicaid members receive exceeds what states pay the insurer to treat those members.

Shares of Elevance fell nearly 6% even as the company reported profits that topped Wall Street estimates. slightly higher operating profit in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the previous year period. Health insurer stocks were similarly battered in May when the CEO of a rival warned of the looming “disruption” in Medicaid, the health care program that covers low-income people.

Over the past year, states have been removing members from their Medicaid programs through a process known as redetermination. The federal government said states could not kick people out of the program during the Covid-19 pandemic even if they were no longer eligible. That protection ended last year, and since then states have been searching their Medicaid membership and checking eligibility.