UnitedHealth Group Inc. today announced that Stephen J. Hemsley has stepped into the position of chief executive officer of the Company, effective immediately. Hemsley has been the company’s president and chief operating officer since 1999.
Richard T. Burke, chairman of the board of directors, said: “Steve has proven himself to be the right leader for the Company at this important time. The Board is pleased with the rapid progress he is making on our recent initiatives to further improve corporate governance. Steve leads by example through teamwork, a commitment to service and his personal integrity. With Steve at the helm, supported by a very talented group of senior executives and business segment CEOs, UnitedHealth Group will continue to innovate, grow and diversify.”
Hemsley said, “We have an exceptional leadership team in place and great employees dedicated to our mission of advancing and improving health care in this country. We serve the vital health care sector, which means we have social responsibilities that are far greater than other commercial enterprises of our size. We take these responsibilities very seriously. Our business remains strong, and we see a great opportunity before us to renew our commitment to excellence in everything we do.”
He also announced recent changes in the structure of UnitedHealth Group’s executive management, which he said were made to address immediate organizational issues and to build leadership capacity for the future to match the scale, diversification and service responsibilities of a growing and highly complex enterprise.
The executive changes, which begin immediately and become fully effective on or after Jan. 1, 2007, include assigning to executives oversight responsibility for the business segments, as well as enterprise-wide, functional responsibilities at the corporate level to focus greater attention and resources on critical areas:
* Richard Anderson, currently executive vice president of UnitedHealth Group and chief executive officer of Ingenix, will become president of the new Commercial Services Group, including Specialized Care Services, Ingenix and Exante Financial Services. On the functional level, hewill oversee technology efforts across the enterprise, which includes all application development, maintenance and infrastructure.
Because much of the company’s successful innovation depends on technology, Anderson will also oversee the company’s expanding consumer services innovation efforts. He will also broadly oversee legal and regulatory administration until the chief administrative officer and chief legal officer positions are filled.
* Lois Quam, currently chief executive officer of Ovations, will become president of the new Public and Senior Markets Group, which will include Ovations and AmeriChoice. Quam will take the lead in developing capabilities and infrastructure on an enterprise level in communications, public relations and government affairs. Quam will also be leading efforts in and acting as spokesperson for UnitedHealth Group’s corporate social responsibility programs and health care issues, which are of fundamental importance to the Company. Until the new chief administrative officer position is filled, she will also oversee Human Capital.
* David Wichmann, currently president and chief operating officer of UnitedHealthcare, will become president of the new Individual and Employer Markets Group, consisting primarily of UnitedHealthcare and Uniprise. Wichmann will be responsible for all business processes and services on an end-to-end, enterprise-wide basis. The Company’s alliance organization and international business activities will also be his responsibility. He will also oversee integration activities and related efforts across the company.
* William Munsell, currently CEOof Specialized Care Services, and Anthony Welters, currently president and CEO of AmeriChoice, are being appointed as executive vice presidents at the UnitedHealth Group level, reporting directly to Hemsley, “to provide greater executive oversight and direction to important and often independent initiatives, relationships and market opportunities.” Munsell will deal largely with internal matters, while Welters will deal with external aspects of the business.
* Dr. Reed Tuckson has been appointed executive vice president and head of Medical Affairs responsible for the Company’s cross-segment leadership on clinical and medical practices.
The company said it will not be breaking down or technically changing its business segments’ unit accountability framework.
Hemsley said, “UnitedHealth Group has experienced extraordinary growth over the past several years. We are introducing an expanded management structure that enables our enterprise to be increasingly nimble and responsive to future market dynamics, while also ensuring that we have the executive capacity and leadership to match our scale and commercial ambitions. With this structure and with these very talented people, we will operate in a more collaborative, open fashion as a leadership team. Together, we can advance a company and culture that fosters a real commitment to care and serve, to innovate and grow and to meet the highest standards of business practice and performance.”
UnitedHealth Group said it is proceeding with the Board of Directors’ mandate to recruit a chief administrative officer, a chief legal officer, a chief ethics officer and recruit new Board members. The Company also plans to make further organizational adjustments as new executive positions are filled and in areas such as marketing and distribution, business and product development and systemic quality.
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) is a diversified health and well-being company based in Minneapolis, Minn. It serves about 70 million people worldwide, through six operating businesses: UnitedHealthcare, Ovations, AmeriChoice, Uniprise, Specialized Care Services and Ingenix. Additional information is available at www.unitedhealthgroup.com.
