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UnitedHealthcare

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7.0

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LAST UPDATED: March 21st, 2024

UnitedHealthcare offers Medicare, Medigap, Medicaid, and plans compatible with Health Savings Accounts (HSAs). UnitedHealthcare also offers excellent member resources.

Before purchasing a health insurance plan, it's important to know if UnitedHealthcare is good insurance. While different UnitedHealthcare plans have different premium rates and cost-sharing rules for medical expenses, customer reviews offer great insight into the quality of the insurance coverage and customer service.

Overall, UnitedHealthcare is a well-known health insurance carrier and worth considering.

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UnitedHealthcare insurance company is a health insurance provider that is owned and operated by its parent company, UnitedHealth Group. This company was founded in 1977 and, with almost four decades of experience, offers a really wide variety of health insurance plans.

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The Good

  • Customer Ratings
  • Coverage Options
  • Medicare and Medicaid
  • Short-Term Health Plans
  • Dental and Vision Insurance
  • Supplemental Insurance
  • Employer Offerings
  • Helpful Tools
  • Support for Healthy Living
  • Customer Service

Customer Ratings

UnitedHealthcare ranks in the top ten health insurance companies. This high ranking shows that UnitedHealthcare is a reliable health insurer. While it could have a higher star rating, it's star rating is average for the industry.

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Customer Review: Kimberly from Hurlock, Maryland

"United Health Care is definitely my choice for health care. All bills are quickly and competently dealt with. In addition, when I have called for more information or to check the status of a medical provider, United Health Care has always had excellent customer service. The representatives are intelligent, extremely polite and very anxious to help. Their attitudes are very positive and cheerful. They are one of the best companies in any area that I have ever had the pleasure to turn to."

UnitedHealthcare has received many positive reviews on BestCompany.com. These reviewers mention satisfaction with the claims process, provider network, and coverage.

Coverage Options

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Customer Review: CoachTrista from Englewood, Colorado

"I love the plan options I have with UHC. They are the most complete and comprehensive health care our family has ever had. They have helpful programs that can assist with finding providers and plan benefits."

Some of the plans at UnitedHealthcare are open-access, and others are in-network only plans. In-network only plans cover patient care received from professionals UnitedHealthcare has contracted with. If your preferred provider is out-of-network, you'll pay the full cost yourself.

In addition, UnitedHealthcare offers Consumer-Directed Health Plans (CDHP) options that are compatible with Health Savings Accounts (HSAs).

As is typical for the industry, you'll need to work with UnitedHealthcare to learn more about options available in your area.

When considering a health plan it's important to look at the covered services, premium rates, and out-of-pocket expenses to make sure that you find an insurance policy that meets your needs.

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Customer Review: Jordon Patton from Pflugerville, Texas

"UHC has been great for us through covering us when we had a baby and when my wife needed a new hearing device. Very widely accepted, so easy to find providers."

Common health insurance plan network structures include Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) and Preferred Provider Organization (PPO). HMO plans only offer coverage for care received by network providers. PPO plans offer more flexibility because they offer coverage for out-of-network care.

Often, in-network service has lower out-of-pocket costs than out-of-network service. You can get the most value out of your health plan by visiting in-network doctors. This will help keep your medical bills lower.

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Customer Review: Debbie Stringham from Garden City, Utah

"I'm grateful for their large director for healthcare providers. I appreciate getting a choice."

Because the cost of a health plan varies based on several factors, including the number of people insured and the kind of policy chosen, those interested in a UnitedHealthcare health policy should research plans on its website to understand more about how much you'll pay for medical services with different plans.

Medicare and Medicaid

UnitedHealthcare also offers Medicare and Medicaid plans for consumers seeking Medicare or Medicaid services. It also participates in the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). UnitedHealthcare's Medicare plans include Advantage plans and prescription drug plans. Individuals seeking a Medicare supplement plan (Medigap) can also find one from UnitedHealthcare.

Original Medicare is not available through any private insurer because it is managed by the government. A Medicare Advantage plan covers the same medical services that Original Medicare does. Most Advantage plans also include qualifying prescription drug coverage, which means you don't need to buy additional coverage.

Plan offerings vary by state. Specific information regarding available plans, premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket expenses can be found on the UnitedHealthcare's Medicare site.

Short-Term Health Plans

UnitedHealthcare offers short-term health insurance to people under age 65. These plans are great if you need temporary health coverage. They offer low premiums and primarily cover preventive care and emergency services. They also cover care related to any new illness that you develop while the plan is in effect. Most of UnitedHealthcare's short-term plans also cover prescriptions.

Keep in mind, however, that these plans do not cover pre-existing conditions.

Dental and Vision Insurance

The dental and vision coverage at UnitedHealthcare is also good. The company has websites dedicated to both dental and vision insurance. For dental coverage, there are employer-sponsored plans, individual, and family plans.

These are great resources for individuals buying insurance and employers seeking to offer good health benefits to employees.

As far as individual and family dental plans work, preventative care is generally covered fully without a deductible or waiting period. The cost-sharing for other kinds of dental work varies by plan. Dental benefits differ for every state, but even if the dentist you want to see is out of UnitedHealthcare's network, it still has some plan options for you.

Vision insurance typically includes 100 percent coverage for an eye exam, glasses, and frames, including an option to add a scratch-resistant surface to your lenses. Other benefits depend on the individual plan.

Supplemental Insurance

In addition to health care insurance, UnitedHealthcare offers disability, critical illness, accident, and life insurance.

A few other health insurers offer similar types of supplemental insurance, so these offerings make UnitedHealthcare competitive for those interested in buying supplemental insurance plans.

Employer Offerings

UnitedHealthcare offers group plans for small businesses, large businesses, and national accounts. However many employees you have, UnitedHealthcare offers plans to meet your needs.

UnitedHealthcare's offerings vary by state, so it's best to work with UnitedHealthcare directly to learn more about your options.

Helpful Tools

Most healthcare insurance carriers offer their policyholders member resources. United Healthcare's offers competitive and helpful tools. When you enroll in a UnitedHealthcare plan, you sign up for a personal account in the online portal, myUnitedHealthcare.com.

Through it, you have access to any of the following:

  • Downloadable forms
  • Tools to help you locate a network provider (primary care doctor, mental health professional, dentist, etc.)
  • ID card resources
  • Claims management (for filing a claim and checking its status)
  • A list of the prescriptions you take
  • An explanation of the benefits of your health plan
  • A tool to estimate the costs of various types of medical care with your insurance plan before you receive treatment

Many of these features are also available through UnitedHealthcare's app.

The ability to estimate healthcare costs based on your plan and search costs by service, health condition, and doctor are advantageous. It allows you to understand costs, avoid surprises, and budget for out-of-pocket expenses like copays and coinsurance.

Through this tool, you can also view quality ratings for in-network providers. You can use this tool to find high quality and cost-effective care. This kind of tool and cost transparency is difficult to find in the healthcare industry, so its availability makes UnitedHealthcare stand out from other providers.

Members also benefit from an online glossary of medical terms, a Healthy Pregnancy app, and access to Virtual Visits (telemedicine).

Support for Healthy Living

Members also benefit from support programs that help them live healthy lives. Programs support behavioral health, disease management (e.g. heart disease and diabetes), addiction, weight loss, and fitness.

If you're eligible, you can also access UnitedHealthcare's Employee Assistance Program (EAP) to get referrals for assistance with life situations.

Many health insurers offer support programs to their members, and UnitedHealthcare's support resources make it competitive.

Customer Service

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Customer Review: Brent Bishop from Layton, Utah

"The customer service there has been very professional. The wait time has been good"

UnitedHealthcare is a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group (UHG), which has decades of experience. Backed by this insurance company, UnitedHealthcare puts an emphasis on technology and innovation. It strongly encourages both individual and societal health.

For five years in a row, Fortune named UHG one of the World's Most Admired Companies in the insurance industry. In addition, the company won a Stevie Award in 2015 for its customer service model, called Advocate4Me. All of these facts about the company add to their overall positive customer culture.

UnitedHealthcare is dedicated to helping people. To contact UnitedHealthcare, people can use phone numbers and a tool to provide feedback to the company online.

UnitedHealthcare further demonstrates its dedication to helping its members live healthier lives and have better health outcomes with its Health4Me app. The Health4Me app contributes a lot to customer service as well.

Through its 24/7 nurse hotline, its tool to refill a prescription, and its capabilities to estimate costs and check medical records, UnitedHealthcare has removed many hassles associated with health insurance logistics. The app even allows members to let customer service know they want to be contacted-making it possible to avoid being put on hold on a phone call to customer service.

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The Bad

  • Negative Reviews
  • State-Specific Health Plans

Negative Reviews

Unfortunately, UnitedHealthcare has a substantial number of negative reviews. Having negative reviews is common for the industry. Reviewers who left poor ratings mentioned difficulty with communication, coverage, and claims denials.

As you read negative reviews, pay attention to where reviewers are from. Consider your situation and medical needs with what reviewers share about theirs.

If you're in a similar situation or in the same area, you may want to weigh concerns more as you make a decision. Even if you are in the same area, remember that UnitedHealthcare may offer multiple plans in your area, so you may still be able to find one that meets your needs.

State-Specific Health Plans

One potential disadvantage here is that some health plans and their benefits are state-specific. UnitedHealthcare's website filters its offerings by state. It's easy to see what's available in your state when you look at health insurance options online.

You should make sure that you understand the fee schedule (premiums, copays, and coinsurance), out-of-pocket limit, how the plan covers pre-existing conditions, and prior authorization requirements that are part of your plan.

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The Bottom Line

Choosing a good health insurer and finding a good insurance policy will help keep your medical expenses affordable. UnitedHealthcare is easily a recommended health insurer. UnitedHealthcare has lots of plans to choose from, which makes it easy to find affordable medical coverage. UnitedHealthcare offers health plans across the United States. Moving to a new state may require enrolling in a new health plan to ensure that the benefits apply.

UnitedHealthcare takes especially good care of its members, providing lots of resources. These include logistical forms, health education, discounts on health products, and several ways to contact a health professional for individual assistance.

The pros outweigh the cons with this health insurance company. Plus, UnitedHealthcare highly values quality and tries to bring convenience and ease to health insurance. We recommend working with UnitedHealthcare.

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Star Rating

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2.2

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558 Reviews

Review Breakdown

5 grade

32%

4 grade

19%

3 grade

6%

2 grade

6%

1 grade

37%

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MARK R LOISELLE Lowell, MA

I do my own scheduling and take advantage of UHC transportation services. They are strict on their 3 day scheduling rule. On a recent call to schedule a trip I was faced with a south east Asian who could not be understood. I was transferred to a very nice woman who helped me. I depend on UHC transportation but find it a 1 star, yet the rest of my contact with UHC has been 5 star thus the 3 star rating. I look forward to an improved relationship with UHC because I joined this September 1 and as well they need to get to know me.

6 months ago

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Amanda George IL

I have united healthcare through the state I live in. The coverage is good IF you can find a provider that takes it. They also will let doctors bill you when they aren't supposed to.

8 months ago

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Christopher Lee Berkeley, CA

I have UnitedHealthcare's select managed care plan through my employer and I've honestly found it below . Their coverage is great - almost no out of pocket cost - but the providers they do have in network are subpar. They also do not have an updated list of providers in their network which makes finding one very difficult. When I called to see if they had a more updated list, the customer service rep said they would email me a list of providers for my area and never did. It's interactions with companies like these that drive me a little crazy.

1 year ago

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borzol Brooklyn, NY

I wanted to send a question to UHC however it does not work this way at UHC. I posted my question ‘Does UHC cover a Cologuard test?’ at Facebook UHC, the response was that they will discuss the question with me on phone. After I replied ‘What’s the problem to answer my question online?’ no response. Is it a top secret issue closed to UHC members?

2 years ago

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Jenn D South Jordan, UT

The coverage has been good. The claims process has been a nightmare. I tried to pay through their portal and the provider never gets it, I get double billed, I get my portion paid from HSA listed as insurance portion, I can't get a statement easily (kicks me off HSA site), and list of claims is a mess. I had Cigna before with almost same coverage, and paid bills as I got them. Easy peasy. UHC is an administrative nightmare.

4 years ago

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Linda Jensen Newberg, OR

United Healthcare is okay, better than some but not better than others. It seems every time the policy is renewed it costs us more for less. This last time policy was renewed they have inputted our co-pay wrong. It has been 4 weeks and they still don't have it fixed. They know it's wrong, confirm that it's wrong - but haven't fixed it. You would think it would be an easy fix.

6 years ago

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Kibitzie Columbia, TN

I like the coverage but I pay way too much for it. the prices keep going up and up. I have this through my job. It does offer things like free gym and ways to earn "dollars" and other free services and discounts but still. the price is just ..a lot.. Not as bad as other companies but still. I shouldn't have to pay so much out of pocket when using their services for dental and health care. Maybe they should try bundling their insurance since some people have more than one of their services.

3 years ago

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betsy fowler Lehi, UT

I guess i am still miffed with how expensive healthcare has become in the United States. I pay over $800 for myself and my newborn per month. That's a huge chunk of my paycheck! That being said, i have had a good experience with United this year. Thankfully they covered a large portion of the hospital expenses for the birth of our baby. We will certainly hit our out of pocket max this year.

4 years ago

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Sheryl Sabal Gilbert, AZ

Overrated and expensive. High co-pays...Maybe it’s my plan. Customer service wasn’t very helpful when I called to ask about my benefits. Long wait time when calling the customer service line. I’ve waited almost an hour then got disconnected and had to start again. Frustrating for someone with a debilitating illness that’s seeking medical care.

5 years ago

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NT Pleasant Grove, UT

monthly fee was expensive. my employer was taking out almost $650/monthly for a family. deductible and out of pocket was expensive. physician i had for many years was not in network. this was the only insurance my company at the time provided. the copay was high, cost of prescriptions were higher than other insurances. i was happy when i didn't have to carry this insurance anymore.

5 years ago

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ANDREW D MERRITT

new to the company with open enrollment this year, started 7/1. Lots of stories already about Rx prices going sky high and people not getting their regular MD. Not looking forward to it.

5 years ago

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Karen Ingram Wantagh, NY

They are OK. I have had limited interaction with them. They email us when a new claim is submitted. I found their EOB's to be very slow. and they were of no help when I was misdiagnosed by a walk in clinic .

5 years ago

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Leonard Leo Potomac, MD

Formerly MDIPA, UH has zero copay for pediatric visits. Unfortunately, the list of tiered drugs has increased the copay amount, and some common drugs are no longer under coverage Choosing your primary care physician is a plus as is common with other health plans.

2 years ago

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Beck khbscrapbook Los Angeles, CA

Good care if you could find a doctor that was on the list to go to.. sometimes they denied charge which I thought were covered. Some of their reasoning didn’t make sense to me. They would wear you down until you just ended up paying the bill to get it to stop.

3 years ago

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NG ,

I like that I have a case manage from the insurance for my son with an ASD. I am annoyed that they dropped their contracts with all the local outpatient OTs, PTs and SLPs. The increased travel is very hard. Also it takes a while for my son to cooperate with the therapist so by having to switch we lost several sessions worth of value.

3 years ago

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Grant American Fork, UT

It was difficult to find many Physicians that accepted United Healthcare in my area. The website was tricky to navigate at times, but I was able to get my questions answered calling customer service phone number on the back of the card.

5 years ago

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Janna Gilbert, AZ

UHC has covered us for about 5 years. They are a good company, I just feel that the coverage is so limited in spite of how high our rates are. For people who are generally very healthy, who don’t make very many claims, we pay a lot of money every month!!

5 years ago

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Foote Queen Creek, AZ

The health insurance is not bad. The doctors I use are associated with UHC too. Really the only issue I have was the prescription cost. I know that different places charge different amounts, but sometimes it seemed the price was high.

5 years ago Edited September 14, 2021

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Becky Skabelund Sandy, UT

United Healthcare's HSA website seems very limited and archaic to me. It's hard to find all the information I look for. They also do not approve medications I need to function at work, so I have to pay for those out of pocket. It seems the pre-authorization process will never be successful for certain medications for anyone.

5 years ago

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Mark laker Indianapolis, IN

I have had UnitedHealthcare insurance for years and now this year they are not covering silver sneakers 100% Next year I will be looking for another plan

5 years ago

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Korene Robinson Herriman, UT

I've always been helped by their customer service when I have contacted them, and they answer my questions clearly. I like the coverage offered by the specific plan I have, both the providers, and locations I can go to.

2 years ago

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Janalee Nielson Smithfield, UT

I like the providers I can go to but my husband and I both used to have insurance through United and they made it very difficult being double covered. It should have been extra smooth since it was the same company.

3 years ago

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Cynthia Louis Tallahassee, FL

I have the student health insurance and it kinda suck. Its expensive and there's not many great benefits for the price. The only good thing about it is I can easily just go to my school's clinic but not worth the money.

4 years ago

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Reagan Durfey Pleasant Grove, UT

We were with United Health Care for a short period of time and although they were OK but we chose to go with a different company when we had the opportunity so we could go to a certain Dr.

5 years ago

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Diane Bona Venice, FL

I’ve had this insurance as a supplement to Medicare. Doctors like this insurance. PPO is the best. More expensive. Drug costs are high though

1 year ago

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king Queen Creek, AZ

They where my insurance company for work. They where there when I needed asstince with questions I have about the policy

5 years ago

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Gary H.

United Health is an okay company, but service when calling for assistance on billing/EOB questions is slow and cumbersome.

6 years ago

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AlieshaDenise LW Atlanta, GA

United Healthcare offers a variety of medical professionals to choose from. I do not like how little they pay on claims...

3 years ago

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DuhMan Newnan, GA

Company is well organized except for its transportation.

6 months ago

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Alison Roush Monmouth Junction, NJ

This company’s customer service could use some work. Wait times are long and representatives can be rude.

2 years ago

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Pliny

Patients come second to profits! Very narrow range of approved procedures!

5 years ago

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club 801 Lehi, UT

We had United health care for 3 years! Great insurance with good providers! Good

5 years ago

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Vina Keeling Peoria, AZ

Lower co-pay and/or pay more.for doctors procedures.

5 years ago

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Miller Clarksburg, MD

Sometimes its difficult getting a claim resolved.

2 years ago

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Jessica Mendez Clarksburg, MD

They have high deductibles but manageable copays.

2 years ago