NEW YORK (Standard&Poor's) March 5, 2012--Standard&Poor's Ratings Services today assigned its 'A-' senior unsecured debt ratings to UnitedHealth Group's (NYSE:UNH) planned issuance of $1.0 billion in senior unsecured notes. The issuance will consist of a mix of 10-year and 30-year maturities. The rating on the new issuance reflects UnitedHealth's very strong competitive position, strong earnings and cash flow profile, as well as its strong liquidity and financial flexibility. Offsetting factors include UnitedHealth's exposure to moderately elevated industry risk that we expect to persist through 2012, increased potential for prospective margin compression, and modest level of tangible net equity. We expect the offering proceeds to be used primarily for the refinancing of commercial paper issued during Q1
