Andrew Witty, the CEO of UnitedHealth Group, has been walking a tightrope in the weeks since his colleague, Brian Thompson, was executed on a New York City street earlier this month. On one hand, Witty’s had to fight to raise flagging morale in the company’s ranks—but on the other, he’s quietly been boasting that 2024 has been a record year financially despite widespread public outrage, according to the Wall Street Journal. In a video sent out on Dec. 23 to employees seen by WSJ, Witty tried to reassure staff about the future of the company saying, “Right now, people continue to have strong feelings inside the organization, maybe nervous, maybe anxious, maybe worried about security.” He went on to praise his employees’ resilience and reportedly sent out other videos to his staff reminding them that the work they do is important. Thompson was the CEO of one of the company’s units, UnitedHealthcare, which provided insurance coverage for more than 50 million people. Since Thompson was slain on Dec. 4, workers at UnitedHealth have reportedly been receiving threatening messages online and via email. A source told WSJ that armed guards have been deployed around the company’s headquarters in Minnesota for safety.
