On a recent conference call, Optum notified some employees that its virtual care division will cease operations in July, according to Becker’s Health IT. Optum Virtual Care launched in 2021 and covers all 50 states. At UnitedHealth’s investor conference in November, Optum’s CEO implied that virtual care is a crowded market, and more recently, employees on social media have reported a significant workforce reduction at Optum, ranging from nurse case managers to senior director and management positions.
Now what? The surge in telehealth utilization during the most intense months of the COVID-19 pandemic drove organizations to scale their capabilities. Now, most need to make hard decisions on what services will withstand long-term ebbs and flows in demand.