Update: The accused, Luigi Manigone, has pleaded not guilty in the murder of Brian Thompson and is currently facing trial; however, both attorneys had agreed to postponing the court trial from January 18 to February 17.
On December 4, 2024, at about 6:44 a.m. in MidTown, New York, the United Healthcare CEO, Brian Thompson, was approached from behind and shot several times at point blank range by a masked gunman. The suspect had appeared to be at the scene an hour before Thompson was attending the UnitedHealth Group’s annual investor conference. The motive for this murder is still undergoing investigation, but one thing is clear, and that this was a targeted assassination. On the shell casings of shots were the words; “deny,” “defend,” and “depose” which hints towards some frustration against UnitedHealthcare’s high claim denial rate. More on this later.
The FBI is offering a $50,000 reward for information that can lead to the gunman’s arrest and another $10,000 offered by the NYPD. The gunman has been tracked by camera footage all over Manhattan, New York, dating from as early as November 24. In which his mask was on at all times, even his two roommates who they shared room with, never saw his face. However, he did pull down his mask and smile at an employee at a hostel lobby and that was captured on camera. Investigators have believed that the man has left New York City on a bus as he was last seen entering a bus station, but no video of him leaving or getting on a bus has been found.
The backpack that is speculated to have been the suspect’s backpack was found in the open, laying on some leaves waiting to be found by the police. Inside were stacks of money from Monopoly. Which could possibly hint towards greed. The board game, Monopoly, specifically illustrates the negatives in private monopolies in an anti-capitalist view.
December 9, 2024
The suspect was found at a McDonalds in Altoona, Pennsylvania, after he was reported for matching the killer’s description and acting suspiciously. Authorities identified the suspect as Luigi Mangione, a 26 year old man, who had his forged IDs, clothing and mask similar to the one worn by the shooter, and a gun matching that of the one shot at Brian Thompson.
What is UnitedHealthcare and the controversy surrounding them?
Oddly, the CEO’s gunman has been cheered by others, people seem to show no remorse for the unjust murder. The UnitedHealthcare company provides health insurance to families but has sparked some controversy following the murder of Brian Thompson. Masses on social media have come out and shared flurries of stories revolving around their frustrations and failures with the company. UnitedHealthcare has the most claims denied than any other private insurance company in the nation. A claim in health insurance is a formal request to an insurance company for payment for the medical services provided to a patient. The insurance company reviews these claims and decides how much to reimburse, or deny the claim.
The major controversy surrounding UnitedHealthcare is that they deny about one-third of claims in 2023, which could lead to deaths. To gauge how much that is, the industry average of denied claims is only 16% and UnitedHealthcare has been denying more than double that amount. Annually, the average American family spends about $23,968 on family health insurance. Now imagine paying that much money so if something bad happens, you can get care and treatment, but actually get nothing and end up spending large portions of your yearly salary to an incapable company. You’ll be frustrated.
Additionally, according to HealthCare.gov, no insurance plan can reject you or charge you more for any pre-existing conditions before your coverage with the insurance company has started. But under UnitedHealthcare, there have been alleged reports online of instances of patients’ claims being denied even though they have had a pre-existing medical condition. There are also reports of denials to surgeries days before they have already been scheduled and just in general. These denials affect the patients and families’ mental health because they are unable to receive care for threatening conditions that could lead to death. These frustrated families and people are likely not supporting or glorifying murder, but are just venting their mere frustrations with the UnitedHealthcare insurance company. You never know if these families have lost one of their loved ones due to care being rejected from them, despite them paying thousands and thousands of dollars each year so that these healthcare companies can provide care to them when said tragic situation occurs.
Tying it all back
The UnitedHealthcare CEO, Brian Thompson was tragically killed by a masked suspect. The motive is still undergoing investigation, but the gunman has left hints towards his possible motive. Such as, gun casings possibly referring to the companies high claim denial rates, and Monopoly money that refers to the greed of the company. As insurers who deny and delay claims make even more money from those enrolled and paying the insurance company. This unfortunate situation unveiled a concurrent issue in any healthcare insurance company. People pay thousands of dollars to these companies so that they could be treated if something were to happen, but have a high chance of getting their care denied. This is a reason why some people seem to show no sympathy to the death of the CEO because his company denying healthcare could mean the deaths of thousands. However, it’s important to note that murder and violence should not be supported and that these people are likely just releasing their strong frustrations with the company. The situation is both tough for Thompson’s family and families who have been denied their right to treatment from any healthcare company.
