John Oliver Exposes UnitedHealth's Hidden Corporate Empire
John Oliver recently tackled UnitedHealth Group on his HBO show Last Week Tonight, and his episode drew heavily from the Sunlight Report published by the Center for Health & Democracy in 2025.
The report was a massive investigation into UnitedHealth's corporate structure, which revealed that the company has more than 2,694 subsidiaries and affiliated entities - roughly ten times as many as a decade earlier.
According to the report, nearly 30% of UnitedHealth's revenue is generated internally, with its own businesses doing business with other UnitedHealth-owned businesses. This means that UnitedHealth isn't just an insurance company; it has a vast network of interests in physician practices, pharmacies, pharmacy benefit management, home health care, data and technology, and more.
The report was used to help make Oliver's case against UnitedHealth Group, which he argued has become too big and complex. The episode even included parts that sounded like they were lifted straight from the Sunlight Report website.