UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty resigns: Stephen J. Hemsley returns amid turmoil
UnitedHealth Group's CEO Andrew Witty, is stepping down for "personal reasons". However, the position will go to Stephen J. Hemsley, who had previously been at the head of the company.
On May 13, 2025, it was announced that UnitedHealth Group would have a change of leadership as Andrew Witty is stepping down due to "personal reasons".
Witty’s departure comes at a very challenging time for the health insurance giant, following several difficulties that have weighed heavily on the company’s stock performance and public perception.
Stephen J. Hemsley reinstated as UnitedHealth's CEO
Stephen J. Hemsley has been appointed as the new UnitedHealth's CEO, effective immediately. He will also retain his role as Chairman of the Board of Directors as he will be coming back in a time when the company is dealing with many issues, including public scrutiny and financial setbacks.
Witty, who has led UnitedHealth since 2017, is not leaving the company completely. He will stay in UnitedHealth as a Senior Advisor to Stephen J. Hemsley.
UnitedHealth's challenges amid leadership change
Given the recent departure of its CEO, UnitedHealth has suspended the annual outlook for 2025, citing financial difficulties. However, the company expects to grow in 2026, even after the broadening of "more benefit offerings than seen in the first quarter" and "the medical costs of many Medicare Advantage beneficiaries new to UnitedHealthcare remained higher than expected."
Despite all of this, none was a greater setback than the incident in December 2024, when Brian Thompson, the CEO at the time of UnitedHealthcare, was shot dead in midtown Manhattan by Luigi Mangione, just as he was walking to an investors' conference.
