June 14 Reuters Health insurer stocks dropped sharply on Wednesday after UnitedHealth Group said its costs were on the rise due to an increase in surgeries among older adults.

Shares of UnitedHealth, the largest U.S. healthcare provider by market value, closed down 6.4 at 459.86, wiping out roughly 29 billion from the industry bellwether39;s market capitalization.

Medicarefocused insurer Humana Inc closed about 11 down, and a broader index of managed care providers closed 6.9 lower.

Insurers have been benefiting from a delay in nonurgent surgeries due to the COVID19 pandemic and hospital staffing shortages, but UnitedHealth39;s comments show that the gains may be waning.

Meanwhile, stocks of medical device makers and hospital operators rose, as increased frequency of surgeries mean more revenue for them.

Older adults aged 65 and above covered under Medicare, who had largely stayed indoors during a large part of the pandemic, are getting more comfortable accessing services for things that they might have pushed off a bit like knees and hips, UnitedHealth executives said.

The company highlighted strong demand for hip and knee procedures at outpatient centers, as well as for home health services and behavioral services.

Insurer Elevance Health, CVS Health Corp, Centene Corp and Cigna Group closed between 3 and 8 lower.

UnitedHealth39;s warning was, however, in sharp contrast to commentary from other insurers, including Elevance, which said on Monday that medical care…