UnitedHealthcare CEO kept a low public profile. Then he was shot to death in New York

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UnitedHealthcare CEO kept a low public profile. Then he was shot to death in New York

2024-12-05 06:22 Last Updated At：06:30

NEW YORK (AP) — Brian Thompson led one of the biggest health insurers in the U.S. but was unknown to millions of people his decisions affected.

Then Wednesday's targeted fatal shooting of the UnitedHealthcare CEO on a midtown Manhattan sidewalk thrust the executive and his business into the national spotlight.

Thompson, who was 50, had worked at the giant UnitedHealth Group Inc for 20 years and run the insurance arm since 2021 after running its Medicare and retirement business.

As CEO, Thompson led a firm that provides health coverage to more than 49 million Americans — more than the population of Spain. United is the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans, the privately run versions of the U.S. government’s Medicare program for people age 65 and older. The company also sells individual insurance and administers health-insurance coverage for thousands of employers and state-and federally funded Medicaid programs.

The business run by Thompson brought in $281 billion in revenue last year, making it the largest subsidiary of the Minnetonka, Minnesota-based UnitedHealth Group. His $10.2 million annual pay package, including salary, bonus and stock options awards, made him one of the company's highest-paid executives.

The University of Iowa graduate began his career as a certified public accountant at PwC and had little name recognition beyond the health care industry. Even to investors who own its stock, the parent company's face belonged to CEO Andrew Witty, a knighted British triathlete who has testified before Congress.

When Thompson did occasionally draw attention, it was because of his role in shaping the way Americans get health care.

At an investor meeting last year, he outlined his company's shift to “value-based care,” paying doctors and other caregivers to keep patients healthy rather than focusing on treating them once sick.

“Health care should be easier for people,” Thompson said at the time. “We are cognizant of the challenges. But navigating a future through value-based care unlocks a situation where the … family doesn’t have to make the decisions on their own.”

Thompson also drew attention in 2021 when the insurer, like its competitors, was widely criticized for a plan to start denying payment for what it deemed non-critical visits to hospital emergency rooms.

“Patients are not medical experts and should not be expected to self-diagnose during what they believe is a medical emergency,” the chief executive of the American Hospital Association wrote in an open letter addressed to Thompson. “Threatening patients with a financial penalty for making the wrong decision could have a chilling effect on seeking emergency care.”

United Healthcare responded by delaying rollout of the change.

Thompson, who lived in a Minneapolis suburb and was the married father of two sons in high school, was set to speak at an investor meeting in a midtown New York hotel. He was on his own and about to enter the building when he was shot in the back by a masked assailant who fled on foot before pedaling an e-bike into Central Park a few blocks away, the New York Police Department said.

Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said investigators were looking at Thompson's social media accounts and interviewing employees and family members.

“Didn’t seem like he had any issues at all,” Kenny said. "He did not have a security detail.”

AP reporters Michael R. Sisak and Steve Karnowski contributed to this report. Murphy reported from Indianapolis.

Police hunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO's masked killer after 'brazen, targeted' attack on NYC street

2024-12-05 06:18 Last Updated At：06:20

NEW YORK (AP) — A gunman killed UnitedHealthcare’s CEO on Wednesday in a “brazen, targeted attack” outside a Manhattan hotel where the health insurer was holding its investor conference, police said, setting off a massive search for the fleeing assailant hours before the annual Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting nearby.

Brian Thompson, 50, was shot around 6:45 a.m. as he walked alone to the New York Hilton Midtown from a nearby hotel, police said. The shooter appeared to be “lying in wait for several minutes” before approaching Thompson from behind and opening fire, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said. Police had not yet established a motive.

“Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target,” Tisch said, adding that the shooting "does not appear to be a random act of violence.”

Surveillance video reviewed by investigators shows someone emerging from behind a parked car, pointing a gun at Thompson’s back, then firing multiple times from several feet away. The gunman continues firing, interrupted by a brief gun jam, as Thompson stumbles forward and falls to the sidewalk. He then walks past Thompson and out of the frame.

“From watching the video, it does seem that he’s proficient in the use of firearms as he was able to clear the malfunctions pretty quickly,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said.

Thompson was shot at least once in the back and once in the calf, Tisch said.

The shooter, who wore a jacket, face mask and large backpack, fled through Midtown on foot before pedaling an e-bike into Central Park a few blocks away, police said. The assailant remained at large Wednesday afternoon, sparking a search that included police drones, helicopters and dogs.

“Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him,” the insurer’s Minnetonka, Minnesota-based parent company, UnitedHealth Group Inc., said in a statement. "We are working closely with the New York Police Department and ask for your patience and understanding during this difficult time.”

Police issued a poster showing a surveillance image of the man pointing what appeared to be a gun and another image that appeared to show the same person on a bicycle. Minutes before the shooting, he stopped at a nearby Starbucks, according to additional surveillance photos released by police on Wednesday afternoon. They offered a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to an arrest and conviction.

Thompson’s wife, Paulette Thompson, told NBC News that he told her “there were some people that had been threatening him.” She didn’t have details but suggested the threats may have involved issues with insurance coverage.

Eric Werner, the police chief in the Minneapolis suburb where Thompson lived, said his department had not received any reports of threats against the executive.

The killing shook a part of New York City that's normally quiet at that hour, happening about four blocks from where tens of thousands of people were set to gather for Wednesday night’s tree lighting. Police promised extra security for the event.

The hotel is also a short walk from other tourist sites, including the Museum of Modern Art and Radio City Music Hall, and is often dense with office workers and visitors on weekday mornings. Many security cameras are nearby.

“We’re encouraging New Yorkers to go about their daily lives and their daily business but to be alert,” NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said.

Investigators recovered several 9 mm shell casings from outside the hotel and a cellphone from the alleyway through which the shooter fled. They were also searching Thompson's hotel room, interviewing his UnitedHealthcare colleagues and reviewing his social media, Kenny said.

Police said the e-bike that the shooter used to ride into Central Park came from the city’s bike-share program, CitiBike. A spokesperson for Lyft, which operates the program, said police had not yet contacted the company.

Health care giant UnitedHealth Group was holding its annual meeting with investors to update Wall Street on the company's direction and expectations for the coming year. The company ended the conference early in the wake of Thompson's death.

“I’m afraid that we — some of you may know we’re dealing with a very serious medical situation with one of our team members,” a company official told attendees, according to a transcript. “And as a result, I’m afraid we’re going to have to bring to a close the event today. ... I’m sure you’ll understand.”

Thompson, a father of two sons, had been with the company since 2004 and served as CEO for more than three years.

UnitedHealthcare is the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans in the U.S. and manages health insurance coverage for employers and state-and federally funded Medicaid programs.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz posted on the social platform X that the state is “sending our prayers to Brian’s family and the UnitedHealthcare team.”

“This is horrifying news and a terrible loss for the business and health care community in Minnesota,” the Democrat wrote.

Associated Press writers Tom Murphy in Indianapolis, Steve Karnowski in St. Paul, Minnesota, and Anthony Izaguirre in Albany, New York, contributed to this story.