Health Insurers Tumble, Device Makers Rally on Rising Elective Surgery Expectations

UnitedHealth Group executives said Tuesday at an investor conference that demand for surgeries like knee and hip replacements are picking back up, after the pandemic caused many patients to delay elective care. “There are some indications that looks a little bit like a pent-up demand or delayed demand being satisfied,“ Chief Financial Oofficer John Rex said.

Shares of UnitedHealth, the largest publicly traded insurer, fell 7.6% shortly after Wednesday’s open. CVS Health, Humana, Cigna and Centene also traded lower.

Medical device stocks like Stryker, Zimmer Biomet and Boston Scientific all rallied.

Overall, the S&P Healthcare Index was down 0.8%.