Social Media Unleashes Cruel Responses to UnitedHealthcare CEO's Murder — Posts show frustrations with the U.S. health insurance industry
When the 'S' hits the fan
In the wake of the murderous in a new tab or window of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, some commenters on social media posted savage replies -- a signal of the disdain many hold for America's health insurance industry.
"Unfortunately my condolences are out-of-network," read one comment. Others included, "Thoughts and deductibles to the family," and "Prior authorization is needed for thoughts and prayers."
Redditt. Even on r/medicine, moderators reportedly opened a new tab or window and had to delete a thread on the murder.
The first response to the post is a mock coverage denial letter for treatment for a gunshot wound. Immediately following is a mock reply to an appeal, that reads, in part, "Your plan explicitly excludes coverage for injuries resulting from 'unapproved use of firearms.' As no evidence was provided to confirm the shooting was accidental or unavoidable, we are unable to overturn this aspect of the denial."
Few posts on X when searching for "Thompson" try to temper the outpouring of hatred. "Brian was a genuinely nice guy with a family," one read in a new tab or window. "Celebrating the death of a man because he heads a business you don't like is disgraceful."
Another read opens in a new tab or window, "Just a reminder that Thompson ... was a human being with a family. So many of the comments on his murder are despicable."
Spewing such hatred in the wake of death may be an indicator of just how frustrated Americans have become with the healthcare system and health insurers in particular.
In a recent KFF poll opened in a new tab or window, about two-thirds of Americans said health insurance companies deserve "a lot of blame" for high healthcare costs. A KFF poll from last year opened in a new tab or window found that while most people gave their health insurance an overall rating of "excellent" or "good," the majority also said they experienced a problem using their insurance in the past year, including denied claims and pre-authorization problems.
Coverage denials and frustrations come as health insurers make substantial money. UnitedHealthcare brought in more than $281 billion in revenue last year, and Thompson received more than $10 million in compensation last year, according to the New York Times in a new tab or window. That included $1 million in base pay and cash and stock grants.
Thompson was shot Wednesday morning in midtown Manhattan as he was walking to the annual investor day for parent company UnitedHealth Group. Bullets recovered from the crime scene had the words "deny," "defend," and "depose" open in a new tab or window on them -- which may be an allusion to a book titled Delay, Deny, Defend, which describes the health insurance industry's tactics to stall care delivery.
So what should be defended, a claim, an authorization, or a murderer?
Meanwhile, a person of interest was identified by a co-employee at a McDonald’s restaurant in Altoona, PA. He will undoubtedly be denied bail.
The suspect has an uncanny resemblance to Jake Gyllenhaal. Perhaps this is an A.I. image.
Gary M. Levin M.D.murder
murder