Healthcare: Reserved for the Rich

On December 4, 2024, 50-year-old CEO of UnitedHealthcare, Brian Thompson, was shot and killed shortly before 7 a.m. in New York City. Since then, a 26-year-old man, Luigi Mangione, has been arrested and charged with this murder. Public conversation surrounding this event has been nothing short of interesting to observe because there has been a very obvious socioeconomic divide as opposed to the normal political divide we normally would expect.

Luigi Mangione (arrested, age 26) and Brian Thompson (dead, age 50)

Rich, well-to-do, and upper-middle-class folks, whether Democrat or Republican, have largely both condemned the killing (which is to be expected) but have also gone out of their way to condemn those that sympathize with the killer. Those on the other side of this issue think that murdering people is to be condemned but also view leadership of health insurance companies equally guilty of participating in legalized large-scale mass murder by denying much-needed medical treatment and procedures in order to gain unprecedented levels of profit.

Social media companies and even e-commerce companies like Amazon have taken extraordinary efforts to block and stop everyday citizens from even voicing support for Luigi Mangione. “Delay, Deny, Defend,” which was a book published 14 years ago about the insurance industry, was influential in Luigi’s decision to murder Mr. Thompson in that similar words “delay,” “deny,” and “depose,” were found etched on the shell casings of the bullets used in the murder. These words quickly appeared on t-shirts and other merchandise only to just as quickly be banned from Amazon and other sites. Free speech is a right reserved only for the CEOs that control the wealth of this country. Recently, the news networks have collectively made a decision to stop publishing pictures of Luigi since this has seemed to only garner him more sympathy and support. Again, another example of a clear class divide.

More than likely, a year from now, Luigi will be convicted, sentenced, and the world will move on as “normal.” But healthcare at some point is a problem that is going to have to be solved, and we all will be the better for it. I just feel sad for all those that will die via claim and coverage denials before that day comes.