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Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate  United States Province

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Shareholders Call on United Healthcare Group to Issue a Report on the Public Health Costs of Delayed or Denied Access to Treatment January 14th, 2025

Image by Tung Nguyen from Pixabay

NEW YORK, NY, WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2024 – Shareholders of UnitedHealth Group ($UNH) today announced that they had filed a proposal for the 2025 proxy requesting that the Board of Directors prepare a report on the public health-related costs and macroeconomic risks created by the company’s practices that limit or delay access to healthcare.

Specifically, shareholders recommend that the report evaluate how company practices impact access to healthcare and patient outcomes, including analyses of how often prior authorization requirements or denials of coverage lead to delay or abandonment of medical treatment, and serious adverse events for patients.

The proponents are institutional investors who have been engaging UNH and other companies in the healthcare sector for many years around questions of access and affordability. As investors with diversified holdings, they argue that while UNH’s policies may boost short-term revenue, its vertically integrated business model and escalating costs disempower patients, create long-term reputational and legal risks for the company and pose broader risks to the economy that, by extension, threaten investors’ total portfolios.

Said Timnit Ghermay of the Congregation des Soeurs des Saints Noms de Jesus et de Marie who led the filing of the proposal, “UNH has been in the media and legislative spotlight for some time given its market dominance, aggressive marketing of Medicare Advantage and questionable use of AI algorithms to deny care to patients. As the tragic murder of UNH’s Brian Thompson made evident, public outrage over the exorbitant costs and restricted access to healthcare has reached a dangerous level in our country. Our proposal suggests some introspection by UNH that will help the company and all its stakeholders thrive.”

As the 4th largest company in the U.S. owning not only insurers but also providers, the power and influence of UNH over the U.S. economy cannot be overstated. It is estimated that over 5 percent of U.S. gross domestic product flows through the company’s systems daily touching millions of Americans. This power, and the profits UNH generates, have attracted the scrutiny of legislators who are calling for the company to be split up and reformed. According to STAT, “Lawmakers and regulators have sharply criticized the company for excessive profiteering within its Medicare Advantage business. It is being sued for allegedly using an error-prone algorithm to systematically deny care to older Americans…It is facing a federal antitrust investigation and a Justice Department lawsuit seeking to block its proposed acquisition of the home health provider Amedisys.”

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Reflection on December’s Ecological Conversion Field Trip with OMI Novices January 14th, 2025

Contributed by Sr. Maxine Pohlman, SSND, Director of Oblate Ecological Initiative


We visited Treehouse Wildlife Center mid-December to experience a community dedicated to the rehabilitation of injured wildlife. TreeHouse exemplifies the spirit of Laudato Si which calls us to shift from the exploitation of other species to treating them as beings “with intrinsic value, apart from their usefulness to us”. Anyone can bring an injured animal to this center, and it will be treated as “brother or sister” in the spirit of St. Francis of Assisi.
 
In the photo ABOVE, Zuni the Coyote is on the far left, followed by Novices Edwin Silwimba, Eliakim Mbenda, Mike Katona, tour guide Marcie Nagle, and Novice Alfred Lungu.
 
Zuni was admitted as an orphan in 2011, already human socialized, so she could not be released back into the wild. Donors make it possible for her and other animals to be cared for until their natural death.
While visiting this enclosure, Marcie invited the novices to howl like a coyote, and when they did, all the coyotes joined in, necks extended, howling and yipping enthusiastically. We were thrilled.
 
Our trip also included a discussion of ways to protect non-human animals in our daily lives, such as creating plant and wildlife-friendly habitats in our own backyards; avoiding use of chemicals which can harm wildlife; picking up trash so animals don’t eat it; learning about endangered species in our own countries; eating a plant-based diet; and of course, treating animals as brothers and sisters, not objects.
 
We ended our visit with gratitude for the wisdom of Laudato Si as well as for our experience of ecological conversion.

Frs. Daniel LeBlanc, OMI & Valentine Talang, OMI Attend UN FFD Preparatory Meeting December 9th, 2024

Contributed by Fr. Valentine Talang, OMI
 
Recently, Fr. Daniel LeBlanc, OMI and I were at the UN in New York City, participating in a Preparatory Committee Meeting for the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development. The Financing for Development conference will take place in June 2025 (Spain).
 
Fr. Daniel spoke at a side event, “How FfD4 Can Strengthen Funding for Social Protection and Healthcare,” organized by the NGO Committee on Financing for Development (a substantive Committee of the Conference of NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the UN).
 
Other speakers at this event were Robert Powell (IMF, special representative to the UN), Umberto Cattaneo (ILO, public finance, Actuarial and Statistics Unit Social Protection Department), Lena Simet (Human Rights Watch) and Barry Herman (Social Justice in Global Development).
 

Washington, DC Council Members Tour Three Part Harmony Farm  October 21st, 2024

 
 
(Contributed by Fr. Séamus Finn, OMI)
 
On Friday, October 18, more than 65 people from the metropolitan Washington, DC Council of Governments visited Three Part Harmony Farm on the grounds of the Oblate administrative offices .
 
This was a great opportunity to tell the story of Missionary Oblates’ presence on this property since 1917 and the more than 10 year partnership we have enjoyed with Three-Part Harmony Farm. 
 
Gail Taylor, Owner and Operator of Three-Part Harmony Farm gave a wonderful presentation on that story and answered questions from the assembled group on how they might expand organic gardening, rooftop gardening and building community supported gardens in their jurisdiction.
 
The weather provided a beautiful 75° fall day for them to take a tour of the garden and to witness the variety of vegetables that are continuing to be harvested on a weekly basis. 
 
We will share more pictures in the coming weeks.
 
(Video courtesy of OM Staff, Janice Cooke)

OMI US JPIC Staff, Advisory Committee Meet in Godfrey, Illinois November 18th, 2022

 
OMI JPIC Staff & Committee

From November 10 to 11 the OMI JPIC Committee had its first hybrid meeting since the Covid-19 pandemic. The in-person venue was the historic Immaculate Heart of Mary Novitiate in Godfrey, IL.

The group meets twice a year to discuss JPIC’s work and exchange ideas. Meeting discussions centered on JPIC’s socially responsible investing efforts, integrity of creation initiatives through LaVista Ecological Learning Center, the 2021-2023 Synod, and Economy of Francesco, an initiative of Pope Francis that engages young people in dialogue about “a different kind of economy that better respects humanity and nature.”
The group also paused to tour the grounds of the newly renovated novitiate, visiting the LaVista Garden and lodge, which sits on the bluff overlooking the Mississippi River.
The US JPIC Advisory Committee is a mix of Oblates and laypersons passionate about issues of justice, economic development and ecology. They serve as a sounding board for the office. Full list of JPIC Committee and office staff: 

  • Dr. Victor Carmona, Chair, Assistant professor of Theology and Religious Studies, University of San Diego 
  • Ms. Patti Radle, Co-Director, Inner City Development
  • Fr. Daniel LeBlanc, OMI, Associate, International JPIC Office and Oblate UN Representative 
  • Sr. Maxine Pohlman, SSND, Director, La Vista Ecological Learning Center
  • Mr. Gary Huelsmann, Chief Executive Officer, Caritas Family Solutions 
  • Mrs. Mary O’Herron, Former OMI JPIC Staff & Honorary Oblate of Mary Immaculate
  • Fr Emmanuel Mulenga, OMI, Pastor, St. Augustine Church
  • Fr. Séamus Finn, OMI, Director, OMI JPIC & Chief of Faith Consistent Investing – OIP Investment Trust
  • George Ngolwe, Associate Director, OMI JPIC
  • Rowena Gono, Communications Coordinator, OMI JPIC
 
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