# UnitedHealth Group **Source:** https://geo.sig.ai/brands/unitedhealth-group **Vertical:** Healthcare **Subcategory:** General **Tier:** Leader **Website:** unitedhealthgroup.com **Last Updated:** 2026-04-14 ## Summary Minnetonka US largest healthcare company (NYSE: UNH) at $400.3B 2024 revenue with UnitedHealthcare + Optum; 2025 leadership transition (Hemsley return, Witty departure) and suspended outlook after Change Healthcare breach and elevated medical costs. ## Company Overview UnitedHealth Group is a Minnetonka, Minnesota-based healthcare and insurance conglomerate — publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: UNH) as the largest healthcare company in the United States by revenue — reporting $400.3 billion in 2024 revenues and operating through two complementary platforms: UnitedHealthcare (health insurance serving 50+ million people) and Optum (health services including OptumHealth care delivery, OptumRx pharmacy benefit management, and OptumInsight technology and analytics). Employing approximately 400,000 people globally across 500+ locations, UnitedHealth Group has been transformed by a turbulent 2024-2025 period: the Change Healthcare ransomware cyberattack (February 2024) disrupted healthcare payments for 190 million Americans; UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was murdered in December 2024 in New York City; and CEO Andrew Witty resigned for personal reasons in May 2025, with founder-era CEO Stephen Hemsley returning to lead the company and the 2025 earnings outlook suspended amid higher-than-expected medical costs. UnitedHealth Group's integrated health services model addresses the healthcare delivery and financing coordination that drives both cost efficiency and member health outcomes: traditional health insurance companies (pure payers) write insurance policies and pay claims — with no control over care delivery quality, cost, or coordination. UnitedHealth's Optum vertical integration (owning and operating physician practices through OptumCare, managing pharmacy drug costs through OptumRx, and providing health data analytics through OptumInsight) creates the integrated payer-provider model where the same organization that covers the insurance risk also delivers the care — theoretically enabling care coordination, preventive intervention, and drug cost management that reduces the claims UnitedHealthcare pays by improving member health. In 2025, UnitedHealth Group competes in the US health insurance, pharmacy benefit management, and health services market with Elevance Health (NYSE: ELV, formerly Anthem, $170B revenue), CVS Health/Aetna (NYSE: CVS, $372B revenue with PBM integration), and Humana (NYSE: HUM, Medicare Advantage focus, $116B revenue) for employer health plan enrollment, Medicare Advantage membership, and health services technology contract adoption. The 2025 operating challenges (suspended earnings guidance, leadership transition, Change Healthcare cyberattack recovery) represent the most significant organizational disruption in the company's history. The 2025 strategy under Stephen Hemsley focuses on stabilizing medical cost ratios (higher-than-expected care utilization driving elevated combined ratios), managing the Change Healthcare integration and security remediation, and defending Medicare Advantage market share against CMS reimbursement rate compression. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### What is UnitedHealth Group? UnitedHealth Group is America's largest healthcare company, operating through two platforms: UnitedHealthcare (health insurance serving 50+ million members) and Optum (health services including pharmacy benefits, care delivery, and technology). ### When was UnitedHealth Group founded? UnitedHealthcare Corporation was formally founded in 1977 by Richard Burke in Minnesota, originally to manage health maintenance organizations. The company changed its name to UnitedHealth Group in 1998. ### Who is the CEO of UnitedHealth Group? Stephen Hemsley became CEO in May 2025 after Andrew Witty's sudden resignation. Hemsley previously served as CEO from 2006 to 2017 and remained Chairman of the Board. ### What is Optum? Optum is UnitedHealth Group's health services platform, comprising OptumHealth (care delivery), OptumRx (pharmacy benefits management), and OptumInsight (technology and analytics). It was formed in 2011. ### How many people does UnitedHealth Group insure? UnitedHealthcare, the insurance division, serves over 50 million members through employer plans, individual policies, Medicare, and Medicaid programs. ### How big is UnitedHealth Group? UnitedHealth Group is the third-largest company on the Fortune 500 with $400.3 billion in 2024 revenue. It employs approximately 400,000 people worldwide. ### What happened to UnitedHealth in 2024? 2024 was challenging: a February cyberattack on Change Healthcare affected 190 million people, and in December, UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was murdered in Manhattan. ### What is Change Healthcare? Change Healthcare is a healthcare technology company acquired by UnitedHealth in 2022. It processes medical claims and payments but suffered a major cyberattack in February 2024 that disrupted healthcare payments nationwide. ### Is UnitedHealth Group the same as UnitedHealthcare? No, UnitedHealthcare is the health insurance division of UnitedHealth Group. The parent company also owns Optum, which provides healthcare services, pharmacy benefits, and technology solutions. ### Where is UnitedHealth Group headquartered? UnitedHealth Group is headquartered in Minnetonka, Minnesota, in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area where the company was founded. ## Tags b2b, enterprise, healthtech, north-america, public --- *Data from geo.sig.ai Brand Intelligence Database. Updated 2026-04-14.*