Brian Thompson

Some Lesser Known Facts About Brian Thompson

• From 1997 to 2004, Brian Thompson served at Pricewaterhouse Coopers in Greater Minneapolis, St. Paul, as a manager in the transaction advisory services group of the audit practice.

• He joined United Health Group in April 2004 as Director of Corporate in its Development Group.

• In January 2008, Brian Thompson was promoted to the position of Vice President, Financial Controller, and CFO of Healthcare Alliances. He served in the position till May 2010.

• In May 2010, he was appointed as the Chief Financial Officer (Community and State) at UnitedHealth Group in Minnetonka, Minnesota, United States. He served in the position till May 2011.

• From May 2011 to December 2013, Brian Thompson served as the Chief Financial Officer (Employer and Individual) at UnitedHealth Group.

• In December 2013, he was appointed as a Chief Financial Officer (Medicare and Retirement) at UnitedHealth Group.

• In July 2019, Brian Thompson was promoted to the position of Chief Executive Officer (Government Programs) at UnitedHealth Group. He served in the position till April 2021.

• In April 2021, he was designated as the Chief Executive Officer at UnitedHealthcare in Minnetonka, Minnesota, United States.

• Under Thompson’s leadership, UnitedHealthcare’s profits rose from $12 billion in 2021 to $16 billion in 2023.

• In 2023, he gained attention during an investor meeting by announcing a shift to a “value-based care” model, where doctors are paid to keep patients healthy instead of only treating illnesses.

• ProPublica and the U.S. Senate investigated the rising ‘prior authorization denials’ during his tenure.

• A noted media house called these investigations a disgrace to his leadership.

• The Senate report focused on the rejections made by the company that affected Medicare Advantage plans for elderly and disabled patients.

• In 2019, UnitedHealthcare’s prior authorization denial rate was 8.7%.

• In 2021, the American Hospital Association criticized Brian Thompson over a UnitedHealthcare plan to deny payment for non-critical emergency room visits.

• UnitedHealthcare delayed rolling out the plan after receiving a negative public reaction.

• In 2022, under his leadership, the prior authorization denial rate rose to 22.7%.

• After that, UnitedHealthcare denied the claims for Medicare and non-Medicare patients at twice the industry average.

• On 4 December 2024, at 6:45 a.m. EST, Brian Thompson was in New York for UnitedHealthcare’s annual investors meeting. He had arrived in the city on 2 December 2024.

• While walking on West 54th Street toward the New York Hilton Midtown hotel, he was shot by a gunman.

• The attacker wore a black hoodie and used a silenced 9mm pistol.

• The gunman waited outside the building for several minutes. It indicated to the New York City Police Department (NYPD) that it was a targeted attack.

• Brian Thompson was shot multiple times from about 20 feet (6 meters) away, hitting his back and right calf.

• Police initially stated that the gunman fled on an electric Citi Bike, but Lyft, an American company providing riding services, later said the NYPD rejected that claim.

• After that attack on 4 December 2024, Brian Thompson was taken to Mount Sinai West Hospital and was declared dead at 7:12 a.m.

• The gunman was not found.

  

• Shell casings at the scene had the words ‘deny,’ ‘defend,’ and ‘depose’ written on them.

• Police believed that the words may point to a motive, as these words were similar to the insurance industry phrase ‘delay, deny, defend.’

• Thompson’s wife shared that he had previously received life threats, which may have been linked to issues of denied insurance coverage.

• In 2024, protests took place outside UnitedHealthcare’s Minnesota headquarters over alleged coverage denials, which could be connected to the threats.

• The killing was described as an assassination.

• On social media, many users celebrated the killing. They expressed anger toward Thompson, UnitedHealthcare, and the U.S. health insurance system.

• A physician told a noted media house that while the culprit should face justice, Thompson’s actions as CEO had caused huge suffering for millions of Americans.

• Brian Thompson had been living separately from his wife for years. They lived in separate homes less than a mile apart in Maple Grove, Minnesota.

• Minnesota police investigated a bomb threat at Thompson’s home 12 hours before his assassination in NYC.