UnitedHealthcare slapped the Guardian with a defamation lawsuit over a story by the publication related to its billing for nursing home residents.

At issue is the Guardian’s May 21 story , which alleged that the health care giant made secret payments to nursing homes to reduce hospital transfers in an effort to save money.

The lawsuit, which was filed in Delaware Superior Court late Wednesday, claims that the Guardian had knowingly published “demonstrably false” information and tried to capitalize on media interest in the killing of its then-CEO Brian Thompson last year in New York. 4

The health care company alleged that the Guardian used internal emails — from which it published excerpts — that were quoted out of context. UnitedHealthcare also disputed some of the Guardian’s c

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