“These new standards are now in place across nearly 70% of our settings and are on track to reach nearly 80% by the end of the second quarter.”

In context

“ncounters. Since the last quarter, clinical reviews have increased by more than 50% and with earlier patient intervention and more consistent care coordination. We're already seeing inpatient and skilled nursing admissions trending sharply below historical levels, including an approximately 35% reduction in skilled nursing admissions in the first month compared to last year. These efforts are expanding to additional markets and reflect how using real-time data, strong clinical leadership and coordinated care to improve outcomes can drive more predictable performance. Within our fee-for-service businesses, we've brought more managed structure and accountability, starting with clear scheduling guidelines, stronger regional leadership and better data and analytics to match supply and demand. These new standards are now in place across nearly 70% of our settings and are on track to reach nearly 80% by the end of the second quarter. They have already driven a 12% year-over-year increase in patient-facing hours which is better for both clinicians and patients. We are rapidly scaling self-service digital scheduling, including AI-enabled tools that guide patients to the right appointment in the right setting at the right time for them. That's improving access, reducing friction and expanding capacity without adding incremental clinical burden. Moving to Optum Rx. We started the year by onboarding more than 800 new clients while reducing contact call center volume 25% through enhanced digital and AI-enabled self-service with member satisfaction over 95%. Our unique PreCheck Prior Authorization capability reduces prescription approval time from over 8 hours to under 30 seconds and provides a 68% reduction in denial due to”