Chief Of America’s Biggest Health Insurer Killed In ‘Targeted Attack’

By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News

NEW YORK, USA (Worthy News) – The head of America’s biggest health insurer, UnitedHealthcare, has been killed in an apparently “targeted attack” following an early morning shooting outside an investor meeting in New York, police say.

UnitedHealthcare chief executive Brian Thompson, 50, was shot outside the Hilton Hotel early Wednesday, where the company’s investor conference was being held. Police said Thompson had been rushed to hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

The shooting reportedly began during Thompson’a arrival, as the alleged attacker was waiting for him and shot the executive from about 20 feet (7 meters) away before fleeing on foot.

Thompson had a gunshot wound to the chest and was taken to Mount Sinai West in critical condition, where he was pronounced dead, police and other sources said.

The New York Police Department (NYPD) said no immediate arrests were made and that the investigation was ongoing.

The NYPD described the suspect as “a White man wearing a cream-colored coat, black and white sneakers, a gray backpack, and a black face mask.”

No possible motives for the apparent assassination were immediately announced.

FINANCIAL WORLD SHOCKED

His murder shocked the financial world as the 20-year veteran of UnitedHealth, Thompson, was one of the company’s most senior executives.

The company’s investor presentations were underway as news began to spread of the shooting, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Ryan Langston, an analyst in the audience, said people have started getting phone notifications.

Then Andrew Witty, the chief executive of UnitedHealth Group, the parent company of UnitedHealthcare, addressed the audience.

“We’re dealing with a very serious medical situation,” Witty said, according to people who were in the audience.

Langston said the room “quickly turned very somber, very quiet.” He added, “People, including myself, were calling their families. I let them know I was OK.”

Thompson went by the nickname “BT” and regularly presented the firm at investor events and on earnings calls, according to people knowing him well.

MASSIVE UNIT

The insurance unit he oversaw as due to bring in $280 billion in revenue this year and is the country’s largest health insurer, according to estimates.

In 2021, he became the chief executive officer of the UnitedHealthcare insurance division after working in finance positions across the business.

A certified public accountant,

Thompson graduated from the University of Iowa with a business degree in 1997. He worked at the accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) before joining UnitedHealth.

Thompson’s sister-in-law, Elena Reveiz, said she was still processing the news of his death. “He was a good person, and I am so sad,” Reveiz said.

He is survived by his wife Paulette ‘Pauley’ Thompson, 51, and their two children.

His wife is a practicing physical therapist for Park Nicollet Health Services with over 20 years of experience.

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