SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

FORM 8-K

Current Report Pursuant to
Section 13 or 15(d) of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of report (Date of earliest event reported): May 18, 2004

UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INCORPORATED

               Registrant’s telephone number, including area code:     (952) 936-1300

N/A
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report.)

Table of Contents

Item 9. Regulation FD Disclosure

From time to time in the second half of May and first half of June 2004, William W. McGuire, M.D., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (the “Company”), Stephen J. Hemsley, President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company, and other senior members of the Company’s management team will be meeting with investors and analysts. Those discussions will focus on the Company’s strategy, tactics and future outlook, and will include a reaffirmation of the Company’s prior publicly disclosed 2004 financial expectations.

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT FOR PURPOSES OF THE “SAFE HARBOR” PROVISIONS OF THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995

The Company and its representatives may from time to time make written and oral forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA), including statements in presentations, press releases, filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, reports to shareholders and in meetings with analysts and investors. These statements may contain information about financial prospects, economic conditions, trends and unknown certainties. We caution that actual results could differ materially from those that management expects, depending on the outcome of certain factors. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause our actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Any or all forward-looking statements we make may turn out to be wrong. They can be affected by inaccurate assumptions we might make or by known or unknown risks and uncertainties. The following discussion contains certain cautionary statements regarding our business that investors and others should consider. This discussion is intended to take advantage of the “safe harbor” provisions of the PSLRA. Except to the extent otherwise required by federal securities laws, in making these cautionary statements, we do not undertake to address or update each factor in future filings or communications regarding our business or operating results, and do not undertake to address how any of these factors may have caused results to differ from discussions or information contained in previous filings or communications. In addition, any of the matters discussed below may have affected our past, as well as current, forward-looking statements about future results. Many factors discussed below will be important in determining future results. Consequently, no forward-looking statement can be guaranteed. Actual future results may vary materially from expectations expressed in our prior communications.

We must effectively manage our health care costs.

Under risk-based product arrangements, we assume the risk of both medical and administrative costs for our customers in return for monthly premiums. Premium revenues from risk-based products (excluding AARP) comprise approximately 75% of our total consolidated revenues. We use approximately 80% to 85% of our premium revenues to pay the costs of health care services delivered to our customers. The profitability of our risk-based products depends in large part on our ability to accurately predict, price for, and effectively manage health care costs. Total health

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care costs are affected by the number of individual services rendered and the cost of each service. Our premium revenue is typically fixed in price for a 12-month period and is generally priced one to four months before contract commencement. Services are delivered and related costs are incurred when the contract commences. Although we base the premiums we charge on our estimate of future health care costs over the fixed premium period, inflation, regulations and other factors may cause actual costs to exceed what was estimated and reflected in premiums. These factors may include increased use of services, increased cost of individual services, catastrophes, epidemics, the introduction of new or costly treatments and technology, new mandated benefits or other regulatory changes, insured population characteristics and seasonal changes in the level of health care use. Relatively small differences between predicted and actual medical costs as a percentage of premium revenues can result in significant changes in our financial results. For example, if medical costs increased by one percent for UnitedHealthcare’s commercial insured products, our annual net earnings for 2003 would have been reduced by approximately $75 million. In addition, the financial results we report for any particular period include estimates of costs incurred for which the underlying claims have not been received by us or for which the claims have been received but not processed. If these estimates prove too high or too low, the effect of the change will be included in future results.

We face intense competition in many of our markets and customers have flexibility in moving between competitors.

Our businesses compete throughout the United States and face significant competition in all of the geographic markets in which they operate. For our Uniprise and Health Care Services businesses, competitors include Aetna, Anthem, Cigna, Coventry, Humana, PacifiCare, Oxford, WellPoint, numerous for profit and not for profit organizations operating under licenses from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and other enterprises concentrated in more limited geographic areas. Our Specialized Care Services and Ingenix businesses also compete with a number of businesses. Moreover, we believe that barriers to entry in many markets are not substantial, so the addition of new competitors can occur relatively easily, and customers enjoy significant flexibility in moving between competitors. In particular markets, these competitors may have capabilities that give them a competitive advantage. Greater market share, established reputation, superior supplier arrangements, existing business relationships, and other factors all can provide a competitive advantage. In addition, significant merger and acquisition activity has occurred in the industries in which we operate, both as to our competitors and suppliers in these industries. This level of consolidation makes it more difficult for us to retain or increase customers, to improve the terms on which we do business with our suppliers, and to maintain or advance profitability.

Our relationship with AARP is significant to our Ovations business.

Under our 10-year contract with AARP which was initiated in 1998, we provide Medicare Supplement and Hospital Indemnity health insurance and other products to AARP members. As of March 31, 2004, our portion of AARP’s insurance program represented approximately $4.1 billion in annual net premium revenue from approximately 3.8 million AARP members. The AARP contract may be terminated early by us or AARP under certain circumstances, including a

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material breach by either party, insolvency of either party, a material adverse change in the financial condition of either party, and by mutual agreement. The success of our AARP arrangement depends, in part, on our ability to service AARP and its members, develop additional products and services, price the products and services competitively, and respond effectively to federal and state regulatory changes. Additionally, events that adversely affect AARP or one of its other business partners for its member insurance program could have an adverse effect on the success of our arrangement with AARP. For example, if customers were dissatisfied with the products AARP offered or its reputation, if federal legislation limited opportunities in the Medicare market, or if the services provided by AARP’s other business partners were unacceptable, our business could be adversely affected.

The effects of the new Medicare reform legislation on our business are uncertain.

Recently enacted Medicare reform legislation is complex and wide-ranging. There are numerous provisions in the legislation that will influence our business, although at this early stage, it is difficult to predict the extent to which our business will be affected. While uncertain as to impact, we believe the increased funding provided in the legislation will intensify competition in the seniors health services market.

Our business is subject to intense government scrutiny and we must respond quickly and appropriately to frequent changes in government regulations.

Our business is regulated at the federal, state, local and international levels. The laws and rules governing our business and interpretations of those laws and rules are subject to frequent change. Broad latitude is given to the agencies administering those regulations. Existing or future laws and rules could force us to change how we do business, restrict revenue and enrollment growth, increase our health care and administrative costs and capital requirements, and increase our liability in federal and state courts for coverage determinations, contract interpretation and other actions. We must obtain and maintain regulatory approvals to market many of our products, to increase prices for certain regulated products and to consummate our acquisitions and dispositions. Delays in obtaining or our failure to obtain or maintain these approvals could reduce our revenue or increase our costs.

We participate in federal, state and local government health care coverage programs. These programs generally are subject to frequent change, including changes that may reduce the number of persons enrolled or eligible, reduce the amount of reimbursement or payment levels, or increase our administrative or health care costs under such programs. Such changes have adversely affected our financial results and willingness to participate in such programs in the past and may do so in the future.

State legislatures and Congress continue to focus on health care issues. Legislative and regulatory proposals at state and federal levels may affect certain aspects of our business, including contracting with physicians, hospitals and other health care professionals; physician reimbursement methods and payment rates; coverage determinations; claim payments and processing; use and maintenance of individually identifiable health information; and

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government-sponsored programs. We cannot predict if any of these initiatives will ultimately become binding law or regulation, or, if enacted, what their terms will be, but their enactment could increase our costs, expose us to expanded liability, require us to revise the ways in which we conduct business or put us at risk for a loss of business.

We are also subject to various governmental investigations, audits and reviews. Such oversight could result in our loss of licensure or our right to participate in certain programs, or the imposition of civil or criminal fines, penalties and other sanctions. In addition, disclosure of any adverse investigation or audit results or sanctions could damage our reputation in various markets and make it more difficult for us to sell our products and services. We are currently involved in various governmental investigations, audits and reviews. These include routine, regular and special investigations, audits and reviews by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, state insurance and health and welfare departments and state attorneys general, the Office of Personnel Management, the Office of the Inspector General and U.S. Attorney General.

We depend on our relationships with physicians, hospitals and other health care providers.

We contract with physicians, hospitals, pharmaceutical benefit service providers and pharmaceutical manufacturers, and other health care providers for favorable prices. A number of organizations are advocating for legislation that would exempt certain of these physicians and health care professionals from federal and state antitrust laws. In any particular market, these physicians and health care professionals could refuse to contract, demand higher payments, or take other actions that could result in higher health care costs, less desirable products for customers or difficulty meeting regulatory or accreditation requirements. In some markets, certain health care providers, particularly hospitals, physician/hospital organizations or multi-specialty physician groups, may have significant market positions or near monopolies that could result in diminished bargaining power on our part.

The nature of our business exposes us to significant litigation risks and our insurance coverage may not be sufficient to cover some of the costs associated with litigation.

Periodically, we become a party to the types of legal actions that can affect any business, such as employment and employment discrimination-related suits, employee benefit claims, breach of contract actions, tort claims, shareholder suits, and intellectual property-related litigation. In addition, because of the nature of our business, we are routinely made party to a variety of legal actions related to the design, management and offerings of our services. These matters include, but are not limited to, claims related to health care benefits coverage, medical malpractice actions, contract disputes and claims related to disclosure of certain business practices. In 1999, a number of class action lawsuits were filed against us and virtually all major entities in the health benefits business. The suits are purported class actions on behalf of physicians for alleged breaches of federal statutes, including ERISA and the Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organization Act (“RICO”). Although the expenses which we have incurred to date in defending the 1999 class action lawsuits have not been material to our business, we will continue to incur expenses in the defense of the 1999 class action litigation and other matters, even if they are without merit.

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Following the events of September 11, 2001, the cost of business insurance coverage has increased significantly. As a result, we have increased the amount of risk that we self-insure, particularly with respect to matters incidental to our business. We believe that we are adequately insured for claims in excess of our self-insurance; however, certain types of damages, such as punitive damages, are not covered by insurance. We record liabilities for our estimates of the probable costs resulting from self-insured matters. Although we believe the liabilities established for these risks are adequate, it is possible that the level of actual losses may exceed the liabilities recorded.

Our businesses depend significantly on effective information systems and the integrity of the data in our information systems.

Our ability to adequately price our products and services, provide effective and efficient service to our customers, and to accurately report our financial results depends significantly on the integrity of the data in our information systems. As a result of our acquisition activities, we have acquired additional systems. We have been taking steps to reduce the number of systems we operate and have upgraded and expanded our information systems capabilities. If the information we rely upon to run our businesses was found to be inaccurate or unreliable or if we fail to maintain effectively our information systems and data integrity, we could lose existing customers, have difficulty attracting new customers, have problems in determining medical cost estimates and establishing appropriate pricing, have customer and physician and other health care provider disputes, have regulatory problems, have increases in operating expenses or suffer other adverse consequences.

We depend on independent third parties, such as IBM, Unisys and Medco Health Solutions, Inc., with whom we have entered into agreements, for significant portions of our data center operations and pharmacy benefits management and processing, respectively. Even though we have appropriate provisions in our agreements with IBM, Unisys and Medco, including provisions with respect to specific performance standards, covenants, warranties, audit rights, indemnification, and other provisions, our dependence on these third parties makes our operations vulnerable to their failure to perform adequately under the contracts, due to internal or external factors. Although there are a limited number of service organizations with the size, scale and capabilities to effectively provide certain of these services, especially with regard to pharmacy benefits processing and management, we believe that other organizations could provide similar services on comparable terms. A change in service providers, however, could result in a decline in service quality and effectiveness or less favorable contract terms.

Business acquisitions may increase costs, liabilities, or create disruptions in our business.

We have recently completed several business acquisitions. We review the records of companies we plan to acquire, however, even an in-depth review of records may not reveal existing or potential problems or permit us to become familiar enough with a business to assess fully its capabilities and deficiencies. As a result, we may assume unanticipated liabilities, or an acquisition may not perform as well as expected. We face the risk that the returns on acquisitions

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will not support the expenditures or indebtedness incurred to acquire such businesses, or the capital expenditures needed to develop such businesses. We also face the risk that we will not be able to integrate acquisitions into our existing operations effectively. Integration may be hindered by, among other things, differing procedures, business practices and technology systems.

We must comply with emerging restrictions on patient privacy, including taking steps to ensure compliance by our business associates who obtain access to sensitive patient information when providing services to us.

The use of individually identifiable data by our businesses is regulated at international, federal and state levels. These laws and rules are changed frequently by legislation or administrative interpretation. Various state laws address the use and maintenance of individually identifiable health data. Most are derived from the privacy provisions in the federal Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act and HIPAA. HIPAA also imposes guidelines on our business associates (as this term is defined in the HIPAA regulations). Even though we provide for appropriate protections through our contracts with our business associates, we still have limited control over their actions and practices. Compliance with these proposals and new regulations may result in cost increases due to necessary systems changes, the development of new administrative processes, and the effects of potential noncompliance by our business associates. They also may impose further restrictions on our use of patient identifiable data that is housed in one or more of our administrative databases.

Our knowledge and information-related businesses depend significantly on our ability to maintain proprietary rights to our databases and related products.

We rely on our agreements with customers, confidentiality agreements with employees, and our trade secrets, copyrights and patents to protect our proprietary rights. These legal protections and precautions may not prevent misappropriation of our proprietary information. In addition, substantial litigation regarding intellectual property rights exists in the software industry, and we expect software products to be increasingly subject to third-party infringement claims as the number of products and competitors in this industry segment grows. Such litigation and misappropriation of our proprietary information could hinder our ability to market and sell products and services.

The effects of the war on terror and future terrorist attacks could have a severe impact on the health care industry.

The terrorist attacks launched on September 11, 2001, the war on terrorism, the threat of future acts of terrorism and the related concerns of customers and providers have negatively affected, and may continue to negatively affect, the U.S. economy in general and our industry specifically. Depending on the government’s actions and the responsiveness of public health agencies and insurance companies, future acts of terrorism and bio-terrorism could lead to, among other things, increased use of health care services including, without limitation, hospital and physician services; loss of membership in health plans we administer as a result of lay-offs or other

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reductions of employment; adverse effects upon the financial condition or business of employers who sponsor health care coverage for their employees; disruption of our information and payment systems; increased health care costs due to restrictions on our ability to carve out certain categories of risk, such as acts of terrorism; and disruption of the financial and insurance markets in general.

The market price of our common stock may be particularly sensitive due to the nature of the business in which we operate.

The market prices of the securities of the publicly-held companies in the industry in which we operate have shown volatility and sensitivity in response to many external factors, including general market trends, public communications regarding managed care, litigation and judicial decisions, legislative or regulatory actions, health care cost trends, pricing trends, competition, earnings, membership reports of particular industry participants and acquisition activity. Despite our specific outlook or prospects, the market price of our common stock may decline as a result of any of these external factors. By way of illustration, our stock price has ranged from $35.33 on December 31, 2001 to $64.44 on March 31, 2004 (as adjusted to reflect stock splits and dividends).

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Signatures

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.