Oversight Record · 5 of 9 · Democrat · Michigan MI-06 · Energy & Commerce
Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI)
U.S. House · Energy & Commerce · "One Third Is Denied" · January 22, 2026
What She Asked
At the January 22, 2026 Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee hearing with the CEOs of five large insurers, Rep. Dingell turned to UnitedHealth Group CEO Stephen Hemsley with a CBS News analysis of about 1.3 billion federal health insurance claims. Insurers denied 19% of in-network claims in 2024. UnitedHealthcare, CBS found, had denied "as many as one third" of its federal claims in the two years before.
She asked whether sick patients should have to spend hours fighting to get treatment approved. He answered that less than 2% of interactions go through prior authorization and that "99% of all the care is covered." So she asked him directly whether the one-third figure was untrue.
The Exchange · Watch It
Opens the committee's official hearing video at 2:21:11, where she turns to Mr. Hemsley. Her full questioning runs 2:17:56 to 2:23:02.
On the Record · January 22, 2026
"People are really struggling. I hear these stories every single day… They're not able to get their kids their medicine."
— Rep. Dingell, 2:18:47
"Patients who are battling terminal illnesses are spending the last days and months of their lives with loved ones on the phones, battling with their insurance company."
— Rep. Dingell, 2:21:43
"Only about less than 2% of all the interactions that we receive are under a prior authorization review. And the vast majority of those are administrative. And at the end of the day, 99% of all the care is covered."
— Stephen Hemsley, CEO, UnitedHealth Group, 2:22:23
"So are you telling me the fact that one third is denied is not true?"
— Rep. Dingell, 2:22:54
"It's not consistent with our experience at all."
— Stephen Hemsley, 2:22:59
Transcribed from the official hearing video; speakers verified on screen. Fillers ("um") removed; nothing else changed.
Reading It Fairly
CBS found the one-third rate in 2022 and 2023, and a "steep drop" in UnitedHealthcare's rate in 2024. Hemsley's "not consistent with our experience" may have been about today. And "less than 2%" was the share of interactions that go through prior authorization, not a denial rate. The full exchange and the data →
The Pincer · Two Members, One Answer
Eight minutes apart, two members put the same question to UnitedHealth Group's CEO from two directions. Rep. Debbie Dingell brought CBS's one-third figure; he said it wasn't "consistent with our experience at all." Rep. Nanette Barragán held up KFF's chart, quoted his answer back to him, and asked what he thought his rate was. "Less than 2%."
In between, Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA) told him about a cancer patient his company had denied. Different parties, same answer: the data and the patients said one thing, and the CEO said another. Both exchanges side by side, with the data →
Her Bills
- Medicare for All Act (H.R. 3069), a lead House sponsor with Rep. Pramila Jayapal, introduced April 29, 2025. One public plan for every U.S. resident, phased in over four years, with no premiums, deductibles or copays for covered care. On our legislation page →
- Medicare At Home Act, introduced August 10, 2026, with Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.). It would add home care to Medicare Part B: help with bathing, dressing, eating, meals and light housekeeping, up to 20 hours a week, under a care plan a clinician certifies, with pay that reflects a wage floor for home care workers. Dingell: "It is a common-sense solution that makes care more affordable for people on Medicare."
- Seniors Deserve SMARTER Care Act (H.R. 5940), an original cosponsor. It would stop CMS's WISeR pilot, which adds AI-assisted prior authorization to traditional Medicare in six states. More on Rep. Schrier's page →
Why This Is Here — and What It Is Not
This is not an endorsement of Rep. Dingell's politics. It's here because she put a published denial figure in front of the largest insurer's CEO, on the record, and asked him to say whether it was false, and because she has put her name on two bills to widen what Medicare covers.
Congressional Voices is a record, not a roster. A good question or a good bill counts here whichever side of the aisle it comes from. AbilityForge has not contacted Rep. Dingell, and she has not reviewed this page.
Tell Them AbilityForge Sent You
She asked the CEO of the country's largest insurer to answer for a published denial rate, on the record. Contact her office to thank her and urge her to keep pressing for public, plain-English denial data.
Sources
- House Energy & Commerce Health Subcommittee — hearing with health insurance company CEOs, January 22, 2026 (official video)
- CBS News — "State of denial: How insurance companies impact health care today," Jan. 11, 2026
- Rep. Jayapal — Sanders, Jayapal, Dingell introduce Medicare for All, April 29, 2025
- Home Health Care News — Lawmakers introduce bill to add home care benefit to Medicare, Aug. 2026
- Portrait: official congressional photo.
Other Members in This Series