VERO BEACH, FLA. — John Michael Prince, the former president and chief operating officer of Optum who helped build the company into a healthcare giant, has died at 59.
Prince passed away on June 28 in Vero Beach, Florida, following a battle with cancer, according to his obituary published in the Minnesota Star Tribune. He was surrounded by family at the time of his death.
Born and raised in Kenilworth, Illinois, Prince attended New Trier High School before earning a bachelor’s degree in economics and mathematics from Northwestern University in 1989. He went on to complete his MBA at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management in 1991, where he was inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma. He later became a licensed CPA.
A Career Built in Healthcare Leadership
Prince began his professional path at Arthur Andersen, working within the firm’s healthcare consulting practice, where he rose to partner. He then moved to JPMorgan Chase, serving as senior vice president and head of healthcare business development strategy, where he led a turnaround effort that produced years of double-digit revenue growth.
In 2005, Prince joined UnitedHealth Group, a move that would define the rest of his career. He was among the executives who helped launch Optum, laying the financial and strategic groundwork for a division that eventually grew into a business worth more than $220 billion.
His responsibilities expanded over the years to include:
- CEO of OptumRx from 2017 to 2021, during which the pharmacy care division added more than $30 billion in revenue and grew to serve over 65 million members
- President and COO of Optum from 2021 to 2023, overseeing the nation’s largest network of employed physicians and more than 103 million customers
- Leadership over the modernization of Optum’s digital, cloud, and technology systems, along with its broader go-to-market approach
Later Years in Private Equity and Board Work
After leaving Optum in 2023, Prince transitioned into healthcare private equity. He served as an operating partner at Advent International and took on advisory roles with other firms, including as a senior advisor at TPG. He also sat on the board of directors for Claritev, formerly known as MultiPlan.
Throughout his career, Prince contributed to several corporate and civic organizations, including the Healthcare at Kellogg Advisory Council, Truepill, the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, the Minneapolis Institute of Art, and the Executives’ Club of Chicago.
Outside of work, Prince was known as a competitive racquet sports player, a sailor, a pianist, and an Eagle Scout. He is survived by his wife of 27 years, Carol Prince, their sons Jack and James, his mother Eleanor Prince, and his siblings Thomas and Adrienne Prince.
A memorial Mass will be held on July 13 at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church in Edina, Minnesota, followed by a celebration of his life at The Minikahda Club in Minneapolis.
