Andrew Witty steps down as UnitedHealth Group CEO as company fights executive murder, rising costs, and stock crash

UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty has announced his resignation on Thursday, citing personal reasons at a time when the country's largest health insurer grapples with rising medical costs, leadership turmoil, and the lingering shock of a high-profile executive’s murder. The company also suspended its 2025 forecast due to surging medical costs, sending its shares plunging more than 11% in morning trading, reported Reuters.

Former CEO Stephen Hemsley, who has been with the healthcare conglomerate for 28 years, is returning to the top role after stepping down in 2017. Witty chose to leave for personal reasons, the company said, without elaborating.

UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty quits: 10 points

-UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty is stepping down for personal reasons. Chairman Stephen Hemsley will become CEO, effective immediately, the Minnesota company said.


-Hemsley was UnitedHealth Group CEO from 2006 to 2017. He will remain chairman of the company’s board. Witty will serve as a senior adviser to Hemsley, according to AP.

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-UnitedHealth has faced a challenging period beginning in December, when executive Brian Thompson was tragically killed outside a New York City hotel. Although the incident was not connected to the company's financial operations, the healthcare giant—valued at $340 billion—has seen a significant decline in its share price since the event.

-“I’m deeply disappointed in and apologize for the performance setbacks we have encountered from both external and internal challenges,” Hemsley said during an early Tuesday conference call. “Many of the issues standing in the way of achieving our goals as well as our opportunities are largely within our control. I am optimistic about our future as these issues are within our capacity to resolve. We will approach them with humility, rigor and urgency.”

-Witty, 60, joined UnitedHealth in 2018 after nearly a decade as CEO of British pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline. He was appointed CEO of UnitedHealth in February 2021, succeeding Dave Wichmann.

-Under Witty’s leadership, UnitedHealth grew into one of the country’s largest corporations. The company reported over $400 billion in revenue last year—a 55% jump from the $257 billion it generated the year before he took the helm.

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-There there have been several setbacks for UnitedHealth over the past five months as it wrestles with the national attention on Luigi Mangione, who was indicted last month on a federal murder charge in the killing of Thompson.

-UnitedHealth reduced its 2025 outlook last month after reporting its first quarterly earnings miss in over ten years. On Tuesday, the company went a step further and withdrew its financial forecast entirely, citing unexpectedly high medical costs tied to new Medicare Advantage enrollees.

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-More than 50 million people are insured through UnitedHealth Group Inc., which also operates a major pharmacy benefit manager and a rapidly expanding Optum division that provides healthcare services and tech support.

-UnitedHealthcare, a subsidiary of the group, is the nation’s largest provider of Medicare Advantage plans, serving over 8 million members. These plans are privately managed alternatives to traditional Medicare, primarily for individuals aged 65 and older.