“I don’t condone what Luigi did. Killing a CEO will not change the healthcare system in this country. It’s an expression of the anger and frustration people have. It’s not one company, not one hedge fund, not one bank. The whole industry is based on profit. That’s what we’re saying is the problem.”
~Steve Zeltzer, Labor Journalist and Community Organizer, excerpt from an article written by Angus Chen of STAT News – “Beneath Deal Making at JD Morgan Conference, Debate and Sympathy Over Americans’ Anger at Health Care”
We shall never promote, condone, or celebrate violence or terrorism, but we will tell the truth even when that truth is inconvenient and unpopular. Luigi Mangione allegedly killed United Healthcare’s CEO, Brian Thompson, in Manhattan (NYC) on December 4, 2024.
The manhunt for Mangione, which included his arrest at the McDonald’s in Altoona, Pennsylvania, and the infamous “Perp Walk” once he was transported back to New York City, was covered excessively by the corporate-owned media. We all heard about Mangione’s “so-called” manifesto and his anti-capitalist memes. However, in regard to reporting on United Healthcare, their shady business dealings, and the nefarious conduct of Brian Thompson, it appears that there is a lapse in attention.
I was curious from the very beginning of this case, as was my partner and colleague, Gale Washington. Here’s what we found:
UNITED HEALTHCARE ACCUSED OF SECURITIES FRAUD.
In May 2024, a civil class action lawsuit was filed against United Health Group naming deceased United Health Care CEO Brian Thompson, United Health Group CEO Andrew Witty, and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Stephen Hemsley as defendants in the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that Thompson, Witty, and Hemsley sold millions of dollars’ worth of UHG stock on insider information. The original plaintiffs in this securities fraud class action were: “The City of Hollywood Firefighters’ Pension Fund.”
As a Californian, although I’m a transplant, I was disturbed that any individual or corporation, for that matter, would prey on firefighters. I mean these firefighters spend their entire careers helping save lives and property, and you have the audacity to trick them out of their pensions? WHAT KIND OF PEOPLE DO THAT? Firefighters anywhere should be respected. I soon discovered that the California Public Employees’ Retirement System aka CalPERS joined the class action against United Health Group as the lead plaintiff in July 2024. I studied the original 20-page complaint filed by the attorneys representing the Hollywood, Florida Firefighters. The amended and consolidated complaint, which includes CalPERS, is much more detailed and lengthy (126 pages) than the original (20 pages). Here, we provide the public the links to both complaints.
There are many factors and a few unsubstantiated conspiracy theories swirling on the Internet regarding the murder of Brian Thompson that prompted me to dig deeper into UHG’s history and business practices. I found it strange and an obvious sign of deceptive business practices when I read a Substack article written by journalist Ken Klippenstein on December 4, 2024.
Klippenstein said, “United Health, the lawsuit alleges, was aware of the Justice Department investigation since October 2023, the public would only learn of the case when the Wall Street Journal published a story about it on February 27, 2024. When news of the DOJ investigation broke, it erased almost $25 billion in shareholder value but by that time (Brian) Thompson had already cashed out, selling over $15 million in personally held United Health shares, per the suit.” [Emphasis added]
There were many interesting comments and responses to Mr. Klippenstein’s article. But there was one that really caught my attention. A Substack follower who goes by the handle “Sfgumshoe” said: “What is particularly valuable about what you have written is that it highlights the failure of major news organizations even to mention such an apparently significant contextual bit of information.” I must ask: Why do you think ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox News, and others are only interested in broadcasting a one-sided narrative that portrays Luigi Mangione as a revenge-minded terrorist? They are blatantly ignoring the insider trading angle. I can’t help but focus on the cumulative loss by investors like you and me. $25 BILLION!!!…That’s Not Newsworthy?
UnitedHealth Kept Floundering Target Date Fund Suite to Curry Favor with Wells Fargo, Lawsuit Alleges
https://www.classaction.org/news/unitedhealth-kept-floundering-target-date-fund-suite-to-curry-favor-with-wells-fargo-lawsuit-alleges (A lawsuit claims UnitedHealth caused participants in its employee retirement plan to lose millions in savings by retaining a poorly performing investment option)
There have been discussions online which speculate that Brian Thompson may have entered into an agreement with the Federal government to testify against his co-defendants in the securities fraud class action case, Andrew Witty and Stephen Hemsley. It’s relevant that Stephen Hemsley sold over $102 million of his personally held UHG stock around the same time as Thompson sold his personally held stock.
I don’t intend on traveling any further down that “rabbit hole,” but I do intend to provoke thought and conversation surrounding the topic.
Please allow me to share some more facts and empirical data about UHG/United Healthcare’s business dealings that the public should know about.
In mid-February 2025, it was reported that approximately 17 hospitals in the State of Florida were suing United Healthcare for allegedly underpaying for emergency services.
UnitedHealthcare sued by 17 hospitals in $145M dispute over out-of-network reimbursement
An excerpt of the article states that: “According to the lawsuit, the hospitals allege that United Heathcare’s strategy for paying for out-of-network providers is ‘motivated by its desire to maximize its own profits at the expense of the very hospitals that care for its members.” It’s pretty obvious that UHG appears to enjoy manipulating, defrauding, and exploiting Floridians. Wasn’t the Governor of Florida (Ron DeSantis) attempting to run for President? Is that how you protect the interests of your constituents, Mr. DeSantis?
Wasn’t this the guy who came to San Francisco and put our city down? Seems to me
Mr. DeSantis needs to focus on what’s happening in his own backyard,
UNITED HEALTH GROUP’S ABUSE TRACKER
United Health Care falls under its parent company, United Health Group. “UHG is the largest healthcare conglomerate in the United States with over 2,300 companies.” (Source: American Economic Liberties Project/United Health Group Abuse Tracker). American Economic Liberties Project (AELP) is a nonprofit and non-partisan organization that does not accept funding from corporations. Contributions from grants and foundations fund the work AELP does. AELP has compiled and crafted an extremely informative and enlightening report which details the misdeeds of UHG from May 2017 through November 2024.
AELP reported the following:
“United Heath Group has a history of denying claims for necessary procedures or medications. Unfairly squeezing out independent physician practices and pharmacies, and fraudulently manipulating medical and patient data to maximize profits.” Source: United Health Group Abuse Tracker Report.
The AELP broke down their UHG Abuse Tracker into four specific categories:
- Patient Privacy Violations: UHG violates patient privacy by using their data without consent.
- Upcoding and overbilling: UHG has a history of upcoding which means that UHG submits medical codes to federal programs for more serious and more expensive diagnoses or procedures than what was necessary, diagnosed or performed. As a result, UHG overbills the federal government wasting millions in taxpayer dollars. Source: UHG Abuse Tracker Report
Ladies and gentlemen, doesn’t this sound like an issue that Elon Musk’s newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) should be zeroing in on? If Elon Musk is really putting the interests of American taxpayers first, then UHG must assuredly be in his crosshairs. But then that brings forth the provocative question: “Can a billionaire executive ‘fat cat’ be trusted to hold multiple billionaire ‘fat cats’ accountable when they violate the public’s trust?” Inquiring minds want to know.
The other two abuse categories in the AELP/UHG Abuse Tracker Report are:
- Denial of care: UHG will deny patients the care they need in order to reduce costs and boost company revenue. This includes medical advice from UHG providers.
And lastly:
- Anti-competitive steering of patients and providers: UHG’s size, vertical integration, and market power allow the company to utilize anti-competitive tactics to steer patients to UHG-owned provider for care, and illegally require practices not to compete for physicians. Source: AELP/UHG Abuse Tracker Report
UnitedHealth Group Abuse Tracker
https://www.economicliberties.us/data-tools/unitedhealth-group-abuse-tracker/
DECEPTIVE BUSINESS PRACTICES – IT’S CHESS, NOT CHECKERS
My partner and colleague, Gale Washington, and I devoted a lot of time to researching the business history of United Health Group and the careers of Andrew Witty, Stephen Hemsley, and Brian Thompson. The complexity of the deceptive business practices and the voluminous amount of evidence was overwhelming. I did not know where to start. I came across an article written by Paul Mulholland that was published on December 11, 2024 entitled, “CalPERS Sues United Healthcare for Insider Trading.” Mulholland wrote “According to the suit, United Health announced it would acquire Change Healthcare in January 2021. ‘Change is a healthcare technology company that provides data solutions aimed at improving clinical decision-making and simplifying payment processes across a healthcare system,’ the suit explained.”
Now, here’s where things get interesting. Mulholland further reported that “In February 2022 the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed to prevent this merger. ‘The DOJ argued that Change is “the leading source of key technologies that United’s health insurance rivals rely on to compete with United.’” You see, ladies and gentlemen, UHG was seeking to purchase a company that provides services for their rivals. This is a common tactic that I have observed in studying UHG’s tactics and strategies within their business model. They have the capital to game the system.
Again, we go back to Mulholland’s article where he says, “The DOJ added that ‘Change also has access to vast amounts of competitively sensitive data about United’s rivals – data that reveals how their plans are designed and how they calculate payments to providers.’”
In order to quell the DOJ’s growing suspicion in regard to UHG’s acquisition of Change Healthcare, United Health created a data firewall between it and Change in May 2022. United Health explained that they did this so they could not exploit the data in an anti-competitive manner. Source: CalPERS Sues United Healthcare for Insider Trading.
This is really just the tip of the iceberg. You really have to dig deep in order to see how treacherous and deceitful UHG operates.
In 2007, Ingenix (a health information technology company) purchased the Lewin Group. Ingenix is one of the subsidiary companies underneath the umbrella of UHG. The Lewin Group is a healthcare and human services consulting firm that provides policy research and analytics. The company was founded in 1970 and is based in Falls Church, Virginia.
The Lewin Group helps clients to:
- Improve policy and expand knowledge about health and human services systems;
- Enact, run, and evaluate programs to enhance delivery and financing of health care and family services;
- Deal with shifts in health care practice, technology and regulation;
- Optimize performance, quality, coverage, and health outcomes; and
- Create strategies for institutions, communities, governments and private sector organizations to make health care and human services systems more effective.
Corporate structure and organizational chart:
https://theorg.com/org/the-lewin-group
What’s interesting about this is that the Lewin Group is supposed to be a non-partisan organization that produces authentic and non-biased reports which are often utilized by our legislators to show positive or negative trends/analyses in the health care industry.
How can “we” as members of the public trust anything that the Lewin Group prints when we know that UHG owns them and, most likely, controls the information that they produce?
As we continued down the rabbit hole, we discover that in 2009 according to OpenSecrets, people affiliated with United Health Group gave a record $5.52 million to political candidates and groups. In 2010, United Health Group hired seven different lobbying firms to work on its behalf. Ladies and gentlemen, UHG paid $8 billion for Change Healthcare. Do you think that this corporation lacks the capital to bribe multiple U.S. legislators? Why isn’t anyone talking about this?
Open Secrets – Donor Lookup
https://www.opensecrets.org/donor-lookup/
On April 29, 2019, U.S. District Judge Robert N. Scola, Jr. (a Cancer survivor) for the Southern District of Florida recused himself from a case against United Healthcare stating that the company’s denial of treatment was “immoral and barbaric.” Source: Wikipedia.
As I prepare to wrap this up, I want to inform our readers about the history between CalPERS and United Health. “In 2008, CalPERS and the Alaska Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry Pension Trust and other pensions settled claims with United Health for $925 million. United Health executives were alleging backdating stock options.
Options backdating is a practice of dating a stock issue before it was actually issued, which can enhance gains for executives that own the stock.” Source: CalPERS Sues United Healthcare for Insider Trading
Andrew Witty, also known Sir Andrew Philip Witty, is the Chief Executive Officer of United Health Group. It is extremely relevant to mention that Witty was also the CEO of pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) between 2008 to 2017. During his tenure as CEO of GSK in July 2013 to be specific, the People’s Republic of China announced that they were investigating allegations of fraud perpetrated by GSK going back to 2007 and involving thousands of millions of Renminbi. Renminbi is the official currency of the People’s Republic of China. Source: Wikipedia.
GSK chief Andrew Witty set to admit China ‘scam’
Neil Woodford launches fresh attack on GlaxoSmithKline
https://www.moneymarketing.co.uk/news/neil-woodford-launches-fresh-attack-on-glaxosmithkline/
THE DUTY OF THE FOURTH ESTATE
The media, which includes journalists, reporters, editors, and news outlets all over the world has often been described as the “Fourth Estate.” The “Fourth Estate” is a vibrant press that is supposed to provide oversight as well as a check on government power, government officials, corporate entities, and individuals who may seek to exploit, manipulate, or oppress “the people.” When the press becomes silent in the face of obvious corruption, deceit, and wrongdoing by anyone but especially those in a position of power, the press/media become complicit in that wrongdoing.
What Is the Fourth Estate?
https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-the-fourth-estate-3368058
A long time ago I took an oath to protect the citizens of the United States of America from all enemies, both foreign and domestic. I can’t and I won’t un-swear that oath, and this is just one of the things that motivates my journalism.
We are hoping that there will be other fearless and courageous journalists who will be willing to explore this topic further.
At this time, I’m not sure if it should be directed at UHG, the corporate owned media, our US legislators, or all of them. You make the choice.
Malik Washington is a freelance journalist and Director at Destination: Freedom and Destination Freedom Media Group.
Oh great Fish Supreme Sandwich with Cheese, please summarize this extremely long article in one paragraph:
The article examines the broader implications of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson’s murder, allegedly committed by Luigi Mangione, highlighting the corporate media’s focus on Mangione’s actions while largely ignoring United Healthcare’s questionable business practices. It details a securities fraud lawsuit against UHG, involving insider trading by top executives, and a history of deceptive financial and healthcare practices, including underpaying hospitals, denying necessary care, and manipulating patient data for profit. The piece also critiques the media’s failure to report these issues and calls for more investigative journalism into corporate misconduct, particularly in the healthcare industry.
Thanks, Alan.
Truth be told, I stopped reading the article after I read the sentence below – given the size of their pensions and involvement in local politics in particular:
“Firefighters anywhere should be respected.”
Ron O, this is Malik Washington. I suppose what bothered me the most about the fraud that United Health Group perpetrated against the firefighters in Florida was the fact that they worked their entire lives and when it came time to retire, they were exploited by these corporate executives. I won’t apologize for my statement regarding respect due the firefighters. I wish you have read the whole piece. I’ll work on my brevity. I have a tendency to be long winded when there’s a topic that I’m passionate about. Thank you for your comments. Keep reading the Vanguard.
I recall that labor unions went after a city council candidate whom I strongly supported (who shares the last name “Greenwald”). I’m not seeing where the firefighters union was involved with that. (For some reason, I thought that they were – but I’m not seeing that below.)
It is true that even I thought Sue Greenwald was mistaken, regarding how she was viewed. (I recall thinking that she should just let it go, rather than continuing to argue on a council that was stacked against her. Reminds me of the incident with Zelensky – a no-win situation.)
In any case, there’s really only a matter of “degree” when it comes to corruption. As such, I’m not necessarily a fan of any particular industry or union. Most of the time, “both” of them are working against the public at large. I’ve also seen this in action regarding teacher unions.
Or to put it more kindly, capitalism itself is based upon exploitation at its core. I don’t know if it’s the best system, but it’s one that is increasingly-pursued by “successful” countries – worldwide. Maybe this says something about humanity, itself.
In any case, all of this is why you don’t get candidates whom don’t actually prioritize the public’s interest. (Trump claims to do so, which is probably why he won.)
Here’s an article I found regarding the Davis city council campaign in which Sue Greenwald was targeted:
“The Davis City Council campaign took an ugly turn Tuesday as local voters received a mailer attacking City Councilwoman Sue Greenwald, paid for by three non-Davis labor unions.”
https://www.davisenterprise.com/news/city_government/union-campaign-mailer-attacks-greenwald/article_5b910fdb-91ad-5db4-b23a-07d9ff0ee549.html