The airline industry. Cable and internet providers. Wireless phone services. Consumers rage against them all—but they seem to reserve a special level of hatred for the $800 billion US healthcare industry, and the shocking murder of the CEO of UnitedHealthcare in New York City brought that hostility between patients and providers into a glaring spotlight.
Within minutes of the shooting early on the morning of December 4, commenters on social media did not hesitate to assume, without evidence, that the assassin was seeking revenge on an industry that must have unfairly rejected a healthcare claim. The fact that the victim, Brian Thompson, was a successful businessman, a husband and father of two children, garnered little sympathy online.
“There is rightful rage that we live in a country where one in five Americans spends at least one month each year without health insurance and even a brief coverage lapse can interrupt lifesaving treatment and cause financial ruin,” says Michael Stein, interim dean of Boston University’s School of Public Health and a professor and chair of health law, policy and management. “Add to that a system of profit maximization—prior authorization denials make us furious and feel the most personal—and the pernicious ongoing discussion of privatizing Medicare and Medicaid. These are political issues that affect the public’s health—but none of them will be solved by killing healthcare executives.
The airline industry. Cable and internet providers. Wireless phone services. Consumers rage against them all—but they seem to reserve a special level of hatred for the $800 billion US healthcare industry, and the shocking murder of the CEO of UnitedHealthcare in New York City brought that hostility between patients and providers into a glaring spotlight.
Within minutes of the shooting early on the morning of December 4, commenters on social media did not hesitate to assume, without evidence, that the assassin was seeking revenge on an industry that must have unfairly rejected a healthcare claim. The fact that the victim, Brian Thompson, was a successful businessman, a husband and father of two children, garnered little sympathy online.
“There is rightful rage that we live in a country where one in five Americans spends at least one month each year without health insurance and even a brief coverage lapse can interrupt lifesaving treatment and cause financial ruin,” says Michael Stein, interim dean of Boston University’s School of Public Health and a professor and chair of health law, policy and management. “Add to that a system of profit maximization—prior authorization denials make us furious and feel the most personal—and the pernicious ongoing discussion of privatizing Medicare and Medicaid. These are political issues that affect the public’s health—but none of them will be solved by killing healthcare executives.
The airline industry. Cable and internet providers. Wireless phone services. Consumers rage against them all—but they seem to reserve a special level of hatred for the $800 billion US healthcare industry, and the shocking murder of the CEO of UnitedHealthcare in New York City brought that hostility between patients and providers into a glaring spotlight.
Within minutes of the shooting early on the morning of December 4, commenters on social media did not hesitate to assume, without evidence, that the assassin was seeking revenge on an industry that must have unfairly rejected a healthcare claim. The fact that the victim, Brian Thompson, was a successful businessman, a husband and father of two children, garnered little sympathy online.
“There is rightful rage that we live in a country where one in five Americans spends at least one month each year without health insurance and even a brief coverage lapse can interrupt lifesaving treatment and cause financial ruin,” says Michael Stein, interim dean of Boston University’s School of Public Health and a professor and chair of health law, policy and management. “Add to that a system of profit maximization—prior authorization denials make us furious and feel the most personal—and the pernicious ongoing discussion of privatizing Medicare and Medicaid. These are political issues that affect the public’s health—but none of them will be solved by killing healthcare executives.”