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On December 4, 2024, Brian Thompson, an American businessman and chief executive officer (CEO) of UnitedHealthcare, was assassinated outside the Hilton hotel in Midtown Manhattan, New York.

Background

Thompson was the chief executive officer (CEO) of UnitedHealthcare, the insurance arm of UnitedHealth Group, from April 2021 until his death in December 2024. The Associated Press described Thompson as keeping "a low public profile" in his role as CEO.

In 2021, Thompson was criticized in an open letter from the American Hospital Association due to a UnitedHealthcare plan to start denying payment for what it deemed as non-critical visits to hospital emergency rooms.

Thompson was a married father of two children. Thompson's wife reported that he had received threats in the past, citing lack of coverage as a possible reason behind them.

Assassination

On December 4, 2024, at 6:45 a.m. EST, Thompson was in New York for an annual UnitedHealthcare investors meeting.

As Thompson was walking along West 54th Street toward the New York Hilton Midtown hotel which was hosting the meeting, he was shot by an assassin dressed in a black hoodie and armed with a silenced 9mm pistol. The assassin had waited outside the building for several minutes and shot Thompson several times from approximately 20 feet (6 m) away, striking him in the back and right calf. Police initially said that the assassin fled the scene on an electric Citi Bike, but Lyft, Citi Bike's parent company, later said NYPD officials retracted that claim.

Thompson was taken to Mount Sinai West Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 7:12 a.m. Both the NYPD and Mayor Eric Adams said the attack appeared to be a targeted hit and was not a random attack.

Timeline

Timeline

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Aftermath

The assassin has yet to be found. He was last seen cycling on West 85th Street just before 7 a.m. and was photographed wearing a black face mask at a Starbucks shortly before the assassination.

In response to the assassination, some public officials expressed dismay and offered condolences to the family. U.S. representative Dean Phillips wrote that he was "horrified by the assassination of my constituent, Brian Thompson, this morning in NYC and have his family in my prayers."

The words "deny", "defend", and "depose" were found written on shell casings at the scene. The similarity of the three words to the title of a book critiquing the American insurance system, Delay, Deny, Defend, has led to speculation of connections between the two.

In the hours following the assassination, many American social media users shared their celebrations of the event, and contempt for Thompson, UnitedHealthcare, and the American health insurance system.

References

1. "Brian Thompson: United Healthcare CEO fatally shot outside Manhattan hotel". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
2. "Q2 2024 Unitedhealth Group Inc Earnings Call". Thomson Reuters StreetEvents. July 17, 2024. Retrieved 5 December 2024 – via Yahoo Finance.
3. Tozzi, John; Miller, Myles (December 4, 2024). "UnitedHealth Executive Fatally Shot in NYC, Sparking Manhunt". Bloomberg News. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
4. Geller, Adam; Murphy, Tom (December 4, 2024). "UnitedHealthcare CEO kept a low public profile. Then he was shot to death in New York". AP News. Associated Press. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
5. Zahn, Max. "Who was UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson?". ABC News. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
6. Burke, Minyvonne; Li, David K.; Fonrouge, Gabrielle (December 4, 2024). "UnitedHealthcare CEO fatally shot outside NYC hotel in 'premeditated, preplanned targeted attack'". NBC News. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
7. Mascarenhas, Lauren; Chowdhury, Maureen; Yan, Holly (December 4, 2024). "UnitedHealthcare CEO fatally shot in New York City". CNN. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
8. Mascarenha, Lauren; Chowdhury, Maureen; Yan, Holly; Hammond, Elise; Sangal, Aditi (December 4, 2024). "UnitedHealthcare CEO fatally shot in New York City". CNN. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
9. Breen, Kerry (2024-12-04). "Gunman who killed Brian Thompson, UnitedHealthcare CEO, is on the loose. What we know about the suspect". CBS News. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
10. Offenhartz, Jake; Matthews, Karen; Sisak, Michael (December 4, 2024). "Police hunt for UnitedHealthcare CEO's masked killer after 'brazen, targeted' attack on NYC street". AP News. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
11. ^ Duddridge, Natalie; Brennan, Dick; Kramer, Marcia; Bauman, Ali; Moore, Jessica (2024-12-05). "UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson shot and killed in NYC. Police say it was a targeted attack. - CBS New York". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
12. Sangal, Lauren Mascarenhas, Maureen Chowdhury, Holly Yan, Elise Hammond, Aditi (2024-12-04). "December 4, 2024, UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson fatally shot in New York City". CNN. Retrieved 2024-12-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
13. Sangal, Lauren Mascarenhas, Maureen Chowdhury, Holly Yan, Elise Hammond, Aditi (2024-12-04). "December 4, 2024, UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson fatally shot in New York City". CNN. Retrieved 2024-12-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
14. Sangal, Lauren Mascarenhas, Maureen Chowdhury, Holly Yan, Elise Hammond, Aditi (2024-12-04). "December 4, 2024, UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson fatally shot in New York City". CNN. Retrieved 2024-12-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
15. ^ Mascarenhas, Lauren; Chowdhury, Maureen; Yan, Holly (December 4, 2024). "UnitedHealthcare CEO fatally shot in New York City". CNN. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
16. "New York Starbucks image may hold key to finding Brian Thompson's killer". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
17. Helsel, Phil (4 December 2024). "Minnesota Gov. Walz, Sen. Klobuchar call killing of CEO tragic and horrifying". NBC News. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
18. Premo, Cole (2024-12-04). "Gov. Tim Walz, other Minnesota leaders respond after UnitedHealthcare CEO fatally shot in NYC - CBS Minnesota". www.cbsnews.com. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
19. Katersky, Aaron; Shapiro, Emily; Cohen, Miles (December 4, 2024). "UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson shot dead in Midtown Manhattan, masked gunman at large". ABC News. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
20. Bickerton, James (2024-12-05). "Brian Thompson's killer becomes focus of "deny, defend, depose" crypto". Newsweek. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
21. Novak, Matt (December 4, 2024). "Bitter Americans React to UnitedHealthcare CEO's Murder: 'My Empathy Is Out of Network'". Gizmodo. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
22. Thalen, Mikael (December 4, 2024). "Grim memes highlight bleak state of insurance in wake of UnitedHealth CEO shooting". Daily Dot. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
23. Klee, Miles (2024-12-04). "Social Media Has Little Sympathy for Murdered Health Insurance Exec". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2024-12-05.

• 2020s in Manhattan
• 2024 in New York City
• 2024 murders in the United States
• Assassinations in the United States
• Deaths by firearm in Manhattan
• Deaths by person in New York City
• December 2024 crimes in the United States
• Health insurance in the United States