Shares of healthcare companies were higher but not by as much as the broader market as investors shifted into sectors more reactive to Fed moves.
Medicare insurers drew $9.2 billion in federal payments in one year through controversial billing practices, with 20 companies benefiting disproportionately and together accounting for more than half of the total, according to federal health investigators. The findings by the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services are the latest sign of growing scrutiny of Medicare Advantage insurers, which offer private plans under the federal benefit program.
In coronavirus news, President Biden said that the U.S. will purchase 500 million additional doses of the coronavirus vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech to donate to developing countries. Separately, a study led by the companies evaluating their vaccine in expectant mothers has been complicated by slow enrollment, researchers say, delaying results that could help inform physicians about how the shots affect pregnant women and their babies.
Write to Amy Pessetto at amy.pessetto@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
09-22-21 1727ET
