Health insurance company UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) announced Wednesday that Larry Renfro will take over immediately as chief executive officer of Optum, its health services business platform.
Renfro replaces G. Mike Mikan, who is leaving to lead a private equity fund.
Optum is Minnetonka, Minnesota-based UnitedHealth Group’s $27 billion health informatics unit made up of three business units — OptumInsight, OptumHealth and OptumRx. The chief executives of each of those businesses — Dawn Owens, CEO of OptumHealth; Andy Slavitt, CEO of OptumInsight (formerly known as Ingenix); and Jackie Kosecoff, CEO of OptumRx — will report to Renfro.
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Renfro joined UnitedHealth Group in January 2009 and was named chief executive officer, public and senior markets group, which includes the businesses serving government-sponsored health programs now known as UnitedHealthcare Medicare & Retirement and UnitedHealthcare Community & State.
Before joining UnitedHealth Group, he was a senior executive officer at Fidelity Investments and a member of the Fidelity Executive Committee. He was president and CEO of AARP Services before rejoining Fidelity in 2008. Renfro has also held senior executive leadership positions at NewRiver, State Street Bank & Trust and Allmerica Financial.
Renfro “brings to Optum a deep experience in healthcare blended with a background of leadership in technology-driven, financial, seniors and other services businesses,” said Stephen Helmsley, CEO of UnitedHealth Group, in a news release.
Helmsley also thanked the outgoing CEO of Optum.
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“While we will miss him as a friend and colleague, we understand his desire to move in a new direction and we wish him every success as he does so,” he said.
