"I believe that UnitedHealth dropped out of

... AHIP primarily due to the fact that they see themselves as a much broader health care company than simply a health plan. That the larger opportunity is with Optum, that its next generation is the Optum model and they want to brand themselves in a much broader way."

— Henry Loubet, senior vice president and chief strategy officer for Keenan in Oakland, Calif., and former head of Western operations for UnitedHealth Group's UnitedHealthcare unit, told AIS's Health Plan Week.