One A Week Sound About Right?

United CEO Andrew Witty gave an address to the company today (video leaked to me). Some highlights:
- "we guard against the pressures that exist for unsafe care or for unnecessary care."
- "There are very few people in the history of the US healthcare industry who had a bigger… pic.twitter.com/7ihMkHAcia

— Ken Klippenstein (@kenklippenstein) December 6, 2024

thedailybeast  |  UnitedHealth Group’s CEO slammed health insurance industry critics on social media as “vitriolic” and “not in tune with reality” as it is battered by anger in the wake of insurance CEO Brian Thompson’s murder.

Andrew Witty, Thompson’s boss, did not make the comments to the public but in a private video to company staff. He has not spoken publicly since the assassination-style murder outside a Manhattan hotel early Wednesday morning.

Independent journalist Ken Klippenstein initially posted a shortened clip of Witty’s comments to his Substack amid an avalanche of people attacking the health insurance industry on social platforms. He followed up with the full almost three-minute long address Witty gave to staff at UnitedHealth.

Witty, clearly reading from a script and dressed casually, defended his industry against accusations it refuses people vital coverage saying “we guard against the pressures that exist for unsafe care or unnecessary care.”

His extended complaint started by claiming the company puts “patients, consumers and members first, as we always have done,” claiming its mission was to improve their experience–and that Thompson left a legacy of doing that.

“I have never been more proud of this company and our colleagues and what this company does on behalf of people in need across this country,” he said.

He urged them to “tune out that critical noise that we’re hearing right now,” adding, “It does not reflect reality. It is simply a sign of an era in which we live.

“What we must know is focus on what we know to be true. And what we know to be true is that we need a company like UnitedHealth Group and it needs people like Brian within it.”

Witty, a British former pharma executive who is known as Sir Andrew Witty in the UK after being given a knighthood by the late Queen Elizabeth, is facing a Department of Justice probe into insider trading allegations. His last fully calculated compensation package in 2023 was $25 million. The company denies wrongdoing.

“I’d like to give you a little bit of advice around the media,” said Witty. “My strong advice and request to everybody is just don’t engage with the media. If you’re approached, I would recommend not responding and, if necessary, simply refer them to our own media organization.”

Witty added, “You’ve seen a lot of media interest in this situation with a huge amount of misinformation and frankly offensive communication,” calling the coverage “aggressive, inappropriate and disrespectful.”

Representatives for UnitedHealth Group and its health insurance division, UnitedHealthcare—which Thompson led—did not immediately respond to a Daily Beast request for comment on the leaked video.

On the heels of Thompson’s death and the ensuing hunt for his assassin, the company removed his bio from a page that once listed UnitedHealth’s leadership. Now it goes to a broken link.

Thompson was shot dead outside the Hilton hotel in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday. He was due to address an investors’ conference for his company, which is one of the largest health insurers in the world. The killer, who experts have suggested is not a professional hitman, fled on an electric bike and remains at large.