Stephen J. Hemsley

Early life and education

Hemsley was born in 1952. He graduated from Fordham University in 1974.

Career

Hemsley began his career at Arthur Andersen, where he served as Managing Partner and Chief Financial Officer. In 1997, he joined UnitedHealth Group, initially serving in senior financial roles. He became President and Chief Operating Officer in 1999, and in 2006, he was appointed CEO, succeeding William W. McGuire. Under Hemsley’s leadership, UnitedHealth Group consistently ranked among the top U.S. companies by revenue.

In 2017, Hemsley stepped down as CEO and transitioned to the role of Executive Chairman of UnitedHealth Group.

A lawsuit was filed against Hemsley, then-UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, and two other senior executives in May 2024 for alleged fraud and insider trading due to failing to disclose an antitrust investigation into the company by the United States Department of Justice and selling stock options before the probe was made public.

Compensation

Business Week reported his annual salary as $14,518,164. For 2016, his compensation was estimated at $31.3 million, representing a 55.8 percent increase compared to 2015, which was estimated at $14,500,000 by FierceHealthcare.

Forbes magazine ranked him at 269th in its 2009 Special Report on CEO Compensation. According to bizjournals.com the country's highest-paid CEO, Hemsley, made $101.96 million in 2010. In 2011, he was named the highest paid CEO by Forbes following a large gain in the value of his stock ownership.

In 2025, following his return as CEO of UnitedHealth Group, Hemsley was awarded a compensation package that included $60 million in stock options, set to vest over three years, along with a base annual salary of $1 million.

Other positions

Hemsley is a trustee of the University of St. Thomas, Minnesota, and of Minnesota Public Radio. He is a member of the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America, the organization's governing body.

References

References

1. Murphy, Tom. (2017-08-16). "UnitedHealth CEO to step down after more than decade". [[MSN]].
2. Genovese, Daniella. (2025-05-13). "UnitedHealth Group names new CEO, shares slide".
3. "UnitedHealth Group Announces Leadership Transition".
4. "Stephen J. Hemsley". NNDB.
5. (December 4, 2024). "Who was Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare fatally shot in Manhattan?". [[CNN]].
6. (2024-04-16). "UnitedHealth chair, execs sold $102M in stock before DOJ probe became public".
7. [https://web.archive.org/web/20091010013947/http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=200985&ric=UNH Stephen Hemsley: Executive Profile & Biography]''Business Week''
8. "CEO Pay Watch: UnitedHealth's Stephen Hemsley made $31.3 million last year". Star Tribune.
9. [http://www.fiercehealthcare.com/payer/health-insurance-ceo-pay-at-big-five-tops-out-at-17-3m-2015] by Leslie Small, in ''FierceHealthcare'' April 24, 2016]
10. [https://www.forbes.com/lists/2009/12/best-boss-09_Stephen-J-Hemsley_NBHE.html Special Report on CEO Compensation]''Forbes''
11. (3 June 2011). "Unitedhealthcare's unspoken lobbying".
12. (13 April 2011). "#1 Stephen J Hemsley". Forbes.
13. (June 2, 2025). "UnitedHealth Investors Back CEO's $60 Million Pay Package".
14. [http://www.scouting.org/filestore/media/324-168.pdf Boy Scouts of America Annual Report 2011] {{webarchive. link. (2012-11-14)