CEO of Minnesota-based UnitedHealthcare killed in ‘targeted’ shooting in NYC
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Brian Thompson, the CEO of Minnesota-based UnitedHealthcare, was fatally shot in what investigators are saying was a targeted attack on Wednesday morning outside a New York City hotel where he was scheduled to attend the company’s annual investors’ conference.
Law enforcement said Thompson was shot around 6:45 a.m. outside a Hilton before the shooter fled. Thompson was taken to a nearby hospital but could not be saved.
The preliminary police investigation indicated the shooting was not random, according to New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
“It appears as though this was a targeted murder,” he said.
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At a Wednesday morning news conference in Manhattan, police displayed images of a person in a black hoodie pointing a gun and a separate image of what appears to be the same person riding away on an e-bike into Central Park. Police are offering up to $10,000 reward for information on the homicide.
The assailant remained at large Wednesday afternoon, sparking a search that included police drones, helicopters and dogs.
Shooting happened before annual meeting with investors
UnitedHealthcare is the insurance arm of the health care giant UnitedHealth Group. The Minnetonka-based company was scheduled to have its annual meeting with investors in New York City to update Wall Street on the company’s direction and expectations for the coming year, according to a company media advisory.
NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said Thompson arrived in New York on Monday and that a review of surveillance video in the area does not suggest he and the shooter crossed paths before Wednesday morning. He said Thompson had left his hotel by himself on Wednesday and did not have security with him.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said “every indication is that this was a premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack.”
"It appears the suspect was lying in wait for several minutes and, as the victim was walking to the conference hotel, the suspect approached from behind and fired several rounds, striking the victim at least once in the back and at least once in the right calf. Many people passed the suspect, but he appeared to wait for his intended target," Tisch said at a news conference.
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 shooter 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.
The suspect is “proficient in the use of firearms” as video shows the shooter fixed a gun malfunction quickly, Kenny said.
A motive was not yet clear.
Kenny said detectives were processing a cell phone found along the suspect’s escape route, trying to identify a witness who was standing next to Thompson, and performing a search warrant on his hotel room.
“We’re reaching out to law enforcement in Minnesota, and we’re also interviewing his coworkers and family members to see if there have been any specific threats against him in the past,” Kenny said.
His wife, Paulette Thompson, told NBC News that he had been receiving threats.
“There had been some threats,” she said in a phone call to NBC News. “Basically, I don’t know, a lack of coverage? I don’t know details. I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him.”
Maple Grove Police told MPR News that a New York Police Department detective called at 8:10 a.m. and Maple Grove dispatched officers to Thompson's home to notify next of kin there.
Maple Grove Police Chief Eric Werner said his department had not received any reports of threats against the executive.
The New York Hilton Midtown is in a bustling part of Manhattan, a short walk from tourist sites such as the Museum of Modern Art and Rockefeller Center, and often dense with tourists and office workers on weekday mornings. The popular Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree lighting is set to take place Wednesday evening.
Part of the block where the shooting took place was cordoned off with police tape, with a large contingent of police officers at the scene. Several evidence markers were on the ground outside a side entrance to the hotel. Many security cameras are nearby.
Shooting left conference attendees scared, confused
After the shooting, an announcement was made to attendees Wednesday morning that the conference was ending early.
“We’re dealing with a very serious medical situation with one of our team members, and as a result, I’m afraid we’re going to have to bring to a close the event today,” UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty said at the event.
Baird investment analyst Michael Ha, who attended the UnitedHealth event, said people were frightened, confused and crying in the hotel hallway.
“At the time, we did not know what had happened, when it had happened, where it had happened. So we didn’t even know if there was a potentially a shooter in the actual building itself,” he said.
“Brian was a highly respected colleague and friend to all who worked with him,” the company 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. Our hearts go out to Brian’s family and all who were close to him.”
UnitedHealthcare has history of denying insurance claims
Thompson, a 50-year-old father of two sons, was named UnitedHealthcare CEO in April 2021. He started at UnitedHealth Group in 2004 and worked in several departments throughout his career, according to the company’s website.
He was one of the company’s highest-paid executives, with a $10.2 million annual compensation package.
Before he became CEO of UnitedHealthcare, he was CEO of UnitedHealthcare government programs including Medicare & Retirement and Community & State, according to the company website.
UnitedHealthcare is the largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans in the country and also manages health insurance coverage for employers and state- and federally funded Medicaid programs.
The company has a history of denying claims or delaying access to benefits for medically necessary services for older adults enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans.
As of 2022, the company is one of three insurers that turned down about a quarter of all requests for care in nursing homes, inpatient rehab hospitals and long-term hospitals, according to a 2024 congressional report.
After years of complaints about care denials, the Senate Permanent Subcomittee on Investigations reviewed three of the largest Medicare Advantage insurers, UnitedHealthcare, Humana and CVS Health’s Aetna. The report found that UnitedHealth and CVS’ denials were about three times higher than other companies’ denial rates for post-acute care.
The company is ranked fourth on the Fortune 500 and employs some 440,000 people worldwide. It’s so dominant that the U.S. Justice Department filed a civil antitrust suit just last month to try to block its proposed $3.3 billion acquisition of rival home health care and hospice agencies.
It also has been grappling with the fallout from a massive data hack of its Change Healthcare unit that provides technology for U.S. health providers, disrupting medical care for patients and reimbursement to doctors for months.
Leaders react to ‘horrifying’ shooting
Reuters reports Antonio Ciaccia, CEO of healthcare research nonprofit 46brooklyn, knew Thompson.
“Sometimes you meet a lot of fake people in these corporate environments. He certainly didn’t ever give me the impression of being one of them,” Ciaccia said. “He was a genuinely thoughtful and respectable guy.”
In a social media post reacting to the shooting, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz wrote that it “is horrifying news and a terrible loss for the business and health care community in Minnesota. Minnesota is sending our prayers to Brian’s family and the UnitedHealthcare team.”
Minnesota U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar called it a “horrifying and shocking act of violence.”
U.S. Rep. Angie Craig offered condolences to Thompson’s family and the UnitedHealthcare community in Minnesota, noting “so many of those folks work and live in my congressional district, so I know this has been a shocking day for us here on Capitol Hill as we’ve heard the news and, of course, back home as well.”
The Associated Press, Reuters and NPR contributed to this report.