UnitedHealthcare’s recent appointment of Tim Noel as CEO may signal business as usual for the corporate healthcare giant, but it does little to address the systemic issues that led to the public outcry following the death of former CEO Brian Thompson. While some framed Thompson’s assassination as a reaction to the injustices of the U.S. healthcare system, the uncomfortable truth is that his replacement changes nothing. The system itself remains deeply flawed, prioritizing profits over people, and unless there is a fundamental shift in how healthcare is structured, no CEO swap will alter that reality.
A System Built on Profits, Not Patient Care
The American healthcare system is unique among developed nations for its emphasis on privatization and profit generation. The cost of care continues to rise, with insurance companies acting as gatekeepers to essential medical services. According to data from NPR, UnitedHealth Group, the parent company of UnitedHealthcare, touches almost every aspect of how Americans access care. With their influence spanning insurance coverage, prescription drug pricing, and even healthcare provider networks, they wield an outsized level of control over what treatments patients can access and at what cost.
Despite claims from UnitedHealth CEO Andrew Witty that the company’s mission is to improve the system and “help people live healthier lives,” the numbers tell a different story. UnitedHealthcare rejects 33% of claims, five times the rate of competitors like Kaiser Permanente. This isn’t an accident—it’s an intentional part of their business model.
The Illusion of Change
The transition from Thompson to Noel is a reminder of how corporations maintain continuity, even in the face of public outrage. UnitedHealthcare has carefully selected a company insider to lead the charge, ensuring that existing structures remain intact. Noel has been with the company since 2007, overseeing Medicare and retirement services—another segment of healthcare often criticized for its inefficiencies and denials of care.
This cycle of leadership replacement gives the illusion of change without addressing the root issues. While there has been a national conversation about healthcare injustices in light of Thompson’s death, there has been little movement on the policy front to address systemic reform.
A Select Few Are Calling Out the Real Problem
A small but growing number of voices, including George Kailas, CEO of Prospero.ai in his recent Fast Company article, are pointing out the deeper problem. It is not about who sits at the head of the table, but the fact that the system itself incentivizes profit-driven decision-making over patient care.
Kailas criticizes the performative outrage surrounding Thompson’s death, arguing that true change will not come from dancing on graves but from policy reform, consumer action, and systemic restructuring. He is right. Anger at individual executives distracts from the larger issue—that the system is designed to function this way, regardless of who is in charge.
Real Change Requires Policy, Not Symbolism
The U.S. remains the only developed nation without universal healthcare, and its patchwork system of private insurance, government subsidies, and employer-based plans creates an environment where profits dictate care. If the past decades have shown us anything, it is that corporate healthcare will not reform itself.
Real change must come from policymakers willing to challenge industry giants and push for structural reform. That means advocating for policies that ensure:
- Greater regulation of insurance claim denials to prevent companies from prioritizing profit over patient needs.
- A public healthcare option or universal system to provide access to care without relying on corporate intermediaries.
- Transparency in pricing and decision-making to hold companies accountable for how they ration healthcare.
A System Designed to Replace, Not Reform
As long as healthcare is treated as a marketplace rather than a necessity, CEOs will come and go while the industry remains unchanged. Tim Noel’s appointment will not alter the core function of UnitedHealthcare—it will simply provide another executive to oversee the same exploitative system. If the country truly wants reform, it must stop expecting corporate leadership changes to fix systemic failures and start demanding real legislative action.
Healthcare in America will not change through the death of one executive. It will change when the country stops treating it as a business and starts treating it as a right. Until then, no amount of outrage or CEO replacements will alter the cycle.