Massachusetts AG Clears UnitedHealth Deal for Atrius Doctors (1)

UnitedHealth Group Inc.’s plan to buy nonprofit Atrius Health, one of largest doctor groups in Massachusetts, has been approved by the state’s attorney general.

As a condition of allowing Atrius to become a for-profit company, most of the $236 million UnitedHealth agreed to pay for Atrius’s assets would be placed in a charitable foundation when the deal closes, according to the attorney general’s office.

UnitedHealth announced plans to buy Atrius last year in a bid to expand its Optum Health physician business, a major driver of growth at the health-care giant. Massachusetts authorities had to approve the conversion ...