UnitedHealth Finds a New Way to Care Less

Welcome back to The Flyover, your daily digest of important, overlooked, and/or interesting Minnesota news stories.

Report: UnitedHealth Incentivized Care Denial in Nursing Homes

An investigation from George Joseph for the Guardian found that UnitedHealth Group, the notorious Minnesota-based healthcare conglomerate, has been issuing bonuses to nursing homes on the down-low and rewarding locations that keep patients out of the hospital, whether they need it or not. Not only has this reportedly saved the company millions, but it’s also an easy job perk to encourage: UH's own medical teams are employed at over 2,000 nursing homes. 

For the report, the Guardian sifted through thousands of confidential corporate and patient records, public records, and court files, while also interviewing past and present employees. UnitedHealth argues that these policies prevent unnecessary and/or dangerous procedures, while whistleblowers say it’s all about denying care for the bottom line.

Internal emails show, for example, that UnitedHealth supervisors gave their teams “budgets” showing how many hospital admissions they had “left” to use up on nursing home patients.

The company also monitored nursing homes that had smaller numbers of patients with “do not resuscitate”—or DNR—and “do not intubate” orders in their files. Without such orders, patients are in line for certain life-saving treatments that might lead to costly hospital stays.

“They’re pretending to make it look like it’s in the best interest of the member,” one UnitedHealth nurse practitioner says. “But it’s really not.”

Into the Alt-Right’s Attempts to Control the George Floyd Narrative

Five years ago, the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was more or less universally admonished—by the public, by police departments across the nation, by media outlets both right leaning and left, and even by Donald Trump. But in the years following, the far-right has been walking back those condemnations, pivoting to a new “fact-based” narrative that is, funnily enough, based on key factual omissions. 

For a timeline on how and why, look no further than this excellent piece from Andy Mannix and Liz Sawyer for the Star Tribune. There are the talking point hucksters, like commentator Tucker Carlson and podcaster Ben Shapiro, who fixated on Floyd’s criminal record and used the findings of his toxicology report to suggest that he died of a drug overdose, despite the state medical examiner determining his cause of death to be homicide. 

And then there’s The Fall of Minneapolis, an Alpha News documentary/piece of propaganda with 3 million views online that echoes the same far-right talking points while omitting critical information about autopsy findings and claiming to have body-cam footage “the politicians and the media didn’t want you to see.” (“By the time the movie came out, the footage had been published in full by news outlets for three years,” writes the Strib.)

Who stands to benefit from a rewriting of this history? The police, obviously; just today the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it was dropping consent decrees in Minneapolis and Louisville, which would have mandated police reforms and offered some degree of accountability.

Meanwhile, corporations are dropping their DEI statements like hot potatoes. “They were looking for an off-ramp,” St. Thomas Director Yohuru Williams tells the Strib. “Right after the verdict, the moral clarity began to distort.” For more details on how Minnesota businesses failed to live up to post-Floyd promises, check out Jay’s very detailed feature story for Racket today.

Finally! Legislature Passes State Fossil Bill

It’s an important day in Minnesota rodent history, as a bill awarding the giant beaver (Castoroides ohioensis) the honor of official state fossil has made it through the Minnesota House and Senate. Will Gov. Tim Walz deny this epic prehistoric animal its title? We shall see!

According to the Science Museum of Minnesota, which has been actively campaigning for an official state fossil for a few years now…

The prehistoric Giant Beaver, which lived during the Pleistocene epoch until approximately 10,000 years ago, could grow to the size of a black bear — reaching lengths of up to 7.5 feet and weighing over 200 pounds. Fossil evidence of these impressive rodents has been discovered across Minnesota, providing important insights into the state's Ice Age history. 

"Minnesota has a deep connection to beavers—from our modern ecosystems to our prehistoric past," Science Museum Chair Alex Hastings says.

You can check out the other candidates in Keith’s very scientific ranking for Racket. If the bill is signed, Minnesota will be the 47th state to designate an official state fossil.

Leinie Lodge Bandshell Now Just a Bandshell?

Two free music stages at the Minnesota State Fair have lost their corporate sponsors and are sporting new names. According to the music calendar section of its website, the stage formerly known as the Leinie Lodge Bandshell is now just going by “Bandshell” while Schell’s Stage at Schilling Amphitheater will thus be known as “The West End Market Stage at Schilling Amphitheater.” Hm, that second one does not roll off the tongue.

“Leinenkugel’s will continue to be available at the State Fair this year,” a rep reassures Ross Raihala at the Pioneer Press. “Though it is common for brands to shift sponsorships, we’ll continue to show up with various partners at events across Minnesota.” Both venues have been named after their beer sponsors for over two decades.