Moody’s cites credit impact on U.S. providers from UnitedHealth cyberattack

U.S. medical providers such as hospitals and physician facilities can expect some credit impact from the recent cybersecurity incident at UnitedHealth's (NYSE:UNH) health tech unit, Change Healthcare, ratings agency Moody's said.

Its view comes as the cyberattack carried out by the hacker group Blackcat/ALPHV in late February remains largely unresolved, disrupting nationwide healthcare facilities as the unit functioned as a central hub for insurance claim processing in the industry.

"The ultimate credit impact on providers will largely depend on the effect of payment delays on cash flow needed to meet expenses," Moody's senior analyst Kailash Chhaya said.

According to Chhaya, the providers that solely depend on Change cannot file for any claims, while many large providers that use multiple systems can mitigate the impact.

On Thursday, UnitedHealth (UNH) pledged to restore Change's claims network and software by mid-March. The company said it would continue to provide funding support to healthcare providers affected by the incident.

Soon after the attack, Moody said the incident would be "credit negative" for UnitedHealth (UNH).

However, this week, Bank of America named UNH its top pick in the managed care space, shrugging off concerns over the hack and citing an attractive valuation after the recent selloff.

U.S. healthcare providers include: HCA Healthcare (HCA), Community Health Systems (CYH), Surgery Partners (SGRY), Tenet Healthcare (THC), SunLink Health Systems (SHY), Universal Health Services (UHS), Select Medical Holdings (SEM), Acadia Healthcare (ACHC), LifeStance Health Group (LFST)