Thought things were settling down at UnitedHealth? Think again.
UnitedHealth Group CEO Andrew Witty has abruptly resigned, effective immediately, the company announced in a Tuesday news release.
The company’s statement said Witty is stepping down after his four-year tenure for “personal reasons.”
Stephen Hemsley, the company’s CEO from 2006–2017, will take Witty’s place while also retaining his position as chair of the company’s board of directors.
Witty will stay on as a senior advisor to Hemsley.
United suspended its 2025 outlook “as care activity continued to accelerate.” It’s a trend the company called out in its most recent earnings call as its new Medicare Advantage beneficiaries are seeing higher costs than expected.
The group’s stock plummeted from $378.75 at market close Monday to $323.30 Tuesday, hitting a four-year low not seen since February 2021, according to Investor’s Business Daily. That’s saying a lot, considering the company has weathered a pandemic, an industry-disrupting cyberattack to subsidiary Change Healthcare, and the killing of its insurance arm’s CEO during that time.
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