The CEO of UnitedHealthcare’s parent company acknowledged in a New York Times op-ed Friday that “the health care system is not working as well as it should,” while condemning the “vitriol” directed at the industry at the aftermath of the murder of CEO Brian Thompson.
Andrew Witty, the former British pharmaceutical executive who has served as CEO of UnitedHealth Group since February 2021, responded Friday to the deluge of social media posts celebrating Thompson’s Dec. 4 killing in Midtown Manhattan.
Law enforcement officials said the killing was premeditated.
The suspected shooter, Luigi Mangione, 26, was charged with murder and other crimes.
He pleaded not guilty.
Mangione, imprisoned in Pennsylvania while fighting extradition to New York, wrote a manifesto disparaging the health care system.
Authorities say he was not insured by UnitedHealthcare.
In the editorial titled “The health care system is broken. Let’s fix it. » Witty said he understood people’s frustration, but described Thompson as part of the solution.
Thompson never forgot growing up on his family farm in Iowa and focused on improving the consumer experience.
“His father spent over 40 years unloading trucks into grain silos. BT, as we knew him, worked on a farm as a child and fished in a gravel pit with his brother. He never forgot where he came from, because it was the needs of people who live in places like Jewell, Iowa, that he first considered in finding ways to improve care,” Witty wrote.
Witty said his company shares some responsibility for the lack of understanding of coverage decisions.
“We know that the health care system is not working as well as it should and we understand people’s frustration about this. No one would design a system like the one we have. And no one did. It’s a patchwork built over decades,” Witty wrote. “Our mission is to contribute to its better functioning. »
He said it was unfair that workers at the company were subjected to threats, even as they mourned the loss of a colleague.
“No employee – whether those who answer customer calls or nurses who visit patients in their homes – should have to fear for their safety or that of their loved ones,” he said. writing.
Witty wrote that Thompson worked to improve the “complicated” health care system.
“Even though the health care system is not perfect, every corner is filled with people trying to do their best for those they serve,” he wrote. “Brian was one of those people.”
He said Thompson “pushed us to build dedicated teams to help the sickest people navigate the health care system.”
“That’s why he fought for preventative health and quality health outcomes rather than just adding more and more tests and procedures.” He believed that health care decisions should start with individual plans and championed plans in which consumers could know costs and coverage options in advance, so they could decide what is right. better for themselves and their families,” Witty explained.
With post wires
