WASHINGTON, DC – The assassination of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson has sparked recent public interest over the justifications of the suspected shooter, Luigi Mangione, noted National Public Radio, reporting police found a handwritten note on the accused claiming a “disconnect between this country’s expensive health care system and low life expectancy.”
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention puts America’s life expectancy at 77.5 years, well below the average life expectancy of high-income countries at 80 years.
And, Dr. Steven Woolf, director of the Center on Society and Health at Virginia Commonwealth University, told NPR, “Research shows about 10-20 percent of health outcomes are attributable to health care,” including, adds NPR, “really serious deficiencies” in the system such as lack of access to insurance and high costs.
Woolf continues, “But the majority of the reason for poor life expectancy in the United States exists outside of the healthcare space.”
Another large contributing factor to America’s low life expectancy is the heightened risk of gun violence in the United States, as noted by Eileen Crimmins, professor of gerontology at the University of Southern California, who said, “Two years’ difference in life expectancy probably comes from the fact that firearms are so available in the United States.”
Crimmins partnered with Woolf on the study “Shorter Lives, Poorer Health” where they noted, “Some of the other factors enumerated in the 400-page report include physical inactivity, child poverty, air pollution, and traffic fatalities,” according to NPR.
Many other countries offer social support programs to assist citizens with unstable living conditions, Woolf adds, noting, “We don’t have as extensive a support structure like that in the United States.”
Woolf points out to NPR the improper regulation of industry in the U.S., that in turn facilitates the nation’s low life expectancy, charging, “We see it in the food industry. We see it in the firearm industry. The opioid epidemic began with…OxyContin in 1996, a drug that other countries throughout Europe and elsewhere would not approve.”
Woolf suggests to NPR the responsibility for this epidemic is out of the hands of the people: “It’s a systemic issue that occurs across corporate America. The healthcare industry is no exception, but it’s not the only source of our poor health.”
Still, healthcare remains complicated by corporate companies’ ability to deny medical claims deemed “medically unnecessary” despite a patient’s urgency to be treated, said NPR.
Public Health Policy professor Miranda Yaver of the University of Pittsburgh did a recent study for her book in which she determined that, on average, 36 percent of adults have experienced at least one medical coverage denial in their lifetime.
Last November, United Healthcare faced lawsuits for “allegedly using AI to process prior authorizations in Medicare Advantage plans,” according to NPR.
Yaver explains, “One of the things that the (UnitedHealthcare) lawsuit points out is that 90 percent of the denied claims were reversed upon appeal, (which is) a wild figure because this really suggests that there is a high error rate.”
United Healthcare did not respond to NPR’s request for comment regarding the legal matter.
Yaver, who has devoted her lifeblood to this work, adds that “this act is almost assuredly not going to lead to a shift in policy by UHC and other private insurers,” referring to the killing of the UHC CEO, and the backlash and anger surrounding the private health industry that has followed.
So, while the private healthcare sector may be a contributor to the staggering life expectancy in the U.S., it is not the sole factor depleting the health of the American public. Rather, it is deeply rooted in “widespread problems that require systemic interventions,” said Yaver.
The thing is Luigi Mangione targeted the UHC CEO with premeditated murder even though he was NEVER insured by United Healthcare. If Luigi did this, everything points right at him, he should be confined behind bars for the rest of his life.
And there’s this being revealed, the irony of it all:
“Luigi Mangione’s family operated nursing home empire that was cited for abuse and health violations”
https://nypost.com/2024/12/13/us-news/luigi-mangiones-family-operated-nursing-home-empire-that-was-cited-for-abuse-and-health-violations/?utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=nypost&utm_source=twitter
“PRIVATE HEALTHCARE OR AMERICAN HABITS TO BLAME FOR LUIGI MANGIONE’S OUTRAGE AGAINST UNITED HEALTHCARE CEO?”
No, Luigi is the blame for his own outrage.
Mr. Olsen, you always seem to put the worst construction on a topic. Please allow us to share our perspective. My husband and I do not condone the use of violence in order to make our political points. Nevertheless, millions of Americans, including Malik and I, understand Luigi’s anger and frustration with the health care system. The mantra of these corporations is “profits by any means necessary no matter who we harm.” The laws are crafted in a manner which shields the corporations (insurance companies) from any liability or accountability. Our legislators are not blind to the broken system, they are willing participants in the system that packs their coffers with hefty donations as well as cushy perks like paid vacations to exotic places. I, Gale, often wonder how many of their family members’ claims get turned down. But as for me, Malik, my issue is this: if people in free society are being mistreated and taken advantage of by corporations like United Health Care, what do you think is happening to incarcerated human beings who are subject to medical neglect and deliberate indifference by for-profit health care corporations like Wellpath? In America, we are facing some stark realities and contradictions when it comes to race and class. The two-tiered system is real and sadly there may be more Luigis to come in the future. THE SYSTEM NEEDS TO BE FIXED.
“Mr. Olsen, you always seem to put the worst construction on a topic.”
Do you say this because my construction on this topic doesn’t line up with your construction on it? I might sometimes disagree with your opinion but would never say that “you always seem to put the worst construction on a topic.”