He also spoke highly of his late colleague, stating, “There are very few people in the history of the US healthcare industry who had a bigger positive effect on American healthcare than Brian [Thompson].”
He went on to say, “The health system needs a company like United Health Group, and it needs people like Brian within it.”
One person on social media responded, “You know what’s unnecessary? Health insurance! Worst middleman of all time.”
Another commenter added, “This is just a fancy way of saying denying care ‘isn’t personal, it’s just business.'”
The video has been criticized as short-sighted: “To simply dismiss everything on social media as ‘critical noise’ reveals how out of touch and elitist he is. He thinks everybody outside of his leadership team are peons to be dismissed.”
“Corporations like this are the disease, not the symptom,” criticized another individual.
Some others raised questions about why Witty holds a title, although he was knighted in 2012 for his contributions to the UK economy.
The leaked video was followed by a memo that praised Thompson as “one of the good guys,” highlighting his “profoundly positive impact on the lives of so many people. People he never saw. People he never met. People who never knew him. But people Brian cared so deeply about.”
He went on to say, “He was certainly one of the smartest guys. I think he was one of the best guys.”
