Multiplan announced a name change on February 18th. The new name is Claritev. But watch out: nothing they do will change! New name, same game: they’ll still try to reduce your reimbursement if you’re out of network – which is why superbills rather than “courtesy billing” is the way to go.
Why the change, then?
Last year was rather embarrassing for MultiPlan. In April, the New York Times published a scathing account of what really happens. They were then slapped with a number of lawsuits from various health systems and the AMA accusing them of price-fixing. And their income in 2024 declined. While I’m not enough of a high-finance person to know what all these numbers mean, the line
- Network-Based Revenues: Declined 17.1% from prior year.
tells me that healthcare professionals have caught on, and are no longer playing MultiPlan’s game. Which could be one reason for the name change.
My experience (and I’m not completely joking!) is that when the big names get tarnished a bit, they polish up by inventing a new made-up handle that supposedly reflects just the opposite of what they do. So in other words “Claritev” somehow magically implies clearness or transparency…? “Elevance” (AKA Anthem) implies … something higher, or elevated? And I won’t even begin to speculate about “Evernorth.” (Cigna).
Following this logic, I wonder what Optum’s new name will be…!
