Americans turn to social media to discuss dire experiences at hands of health insurance companies

Summary

The killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has ignited outrage over the state of U.S. healthcare.

While his murder shocked many, online reactions highlighted public frustration with private insurers, citing denied care, high costs, and systemic bureaucracy.

UnitedHealthcare, a major industry player, has faced scrutiny for practices perceived as prioritizing profit over patients.

The attack, which appears premeditated, underscores rising tensions around healthcare inequality.

Experts see this as part of a broader trend toward violence over societal disputes, reflecting deep dissatisfaction with the American healthcare system.

  • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
    22·
    16 days ago

    Option 1: Vote for Democrats / vote for a woman for president to get incremental improvements to healthcare and society.
    Americans: yawn

    Option 2: Start murdering the powerful capitalist oligarchs which will lead to zero improvements in healthcare and society but fuels fantasies of revenge and temporarily feels good.
    Americans: “Yay!”

    Edit: I’m not even saying we need to pick just one option. But shouldn’t Option 1 also be “yay” if Option 2 is? Why limit how pressure is applied to just picking the violent option? It’s weird how even marches and unions get a lukewarm response compared to vigilantism.

    And these replies I’m getting are interesting. I didn’t expect so many attempts to justify that only a violent option ever would do any good. Let’s say that violence is the most effective option. Does that really mean we don’t try any other options? If I was this inflexible in my day-to-day life, I’d never get anything done.

    • niktemadur@lemmy.worldEnglish
      13·
      16 days ago

      It’s like Richard Pryor said about crack:

      Old white women see addicted kids in the ghetto and shrug “Well isn’t that terrible?”
      Then crack arrives at their suburbs and they’re “OH MY GOD IT’S AN EPIDEMIC!”

    • RobotToaster@mander.xyzEnglish
      8·
      16 days ago

      What improvements did Democrats make in the past 4 years?

      The last time a president made marginal improvements they introduced term limits to stop it happening again.

      • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
        9·
        16 days ago

        You couldn’t find anything?

        • all-time low for uninsured
        • unemployment has held below 4% for the longest stretch since the 1960s
        • income increases began to outpace price increases
        • cost of living is returning to its pre-pandemic level this year
        • energy transition spending was $303 billion last year, a record and two-thirds higher than before Biden
        • rise in real wages for lower-income workers lowers inequality
        • violent crime is down
        • $1.2 trillion infrastructure package to increase investment in the national network of bridges and roads, airports, public transport and national broadband internet, as well as waterways and energy systems
        • signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act that created enhanced background checks, closed the “boyfriend” loophole and provided funds for youth mental health
        • $369 billion investment in climate change, the largest in American history, through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022
        • college debt relief to Americans with loans who make under $125,000 a year
        • cut child poverty in half through the American Rescue Plan
        • capped prescription drug prices at $2,000 per year for seniors on Medicare through the Inflation Reduction Act
        • imposed a 15% minimum corporate tax on some of the largest corporations in the country, ensuring that they pay their fair share, as part of the Inflation Reduction Act
        • rejoined the Paris Agreement
        • gave Medicare the power to negotiate prescription drug prices through the Inflation Reduction Act while also reducing government health spending
        • reduced healthcare premiums under the Affordable Care Act by $800 a year
        • signed the PACT Act to address service members’ exposure to burn pits and other toxins
        • reauthorized the Violence Against Women Act through 2027
        • halted all federal executions after the previous administration reinstated them after a 17-year freeze
        • signed the Respect for Marriage Act, requiring the U.S. federal government and all U.S. states and territories (though not tribes) to recognize the validity of same-sex and interracial civil marriages in the United States
        • RobotToaster@mander.xyzEnglish
          3·
          16 days ago
          • all-time low for uninsured
          • unemployment has held below 4% for the longest stretch since the 1960s
          • income increases began to outpace price increases
          • cost of living is returning to its pre-pandemic level this year
          • rise in real wages for lower-income workers lowers inequality
          • violent crime is down

          None of these are things they did directly

          • energy transition spending was $303 billion last year, a record and two-thirds higher than before Biden
          • $369 billion investment in climate change, the largest in American history, through the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022
          • rejoined the Paris Agreement

          None of these directly help workers

          • signed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act that created enhanced background checks, closed the “boyfriend” loophole and provided funds for youth mental health

          If it’s bipartisan then the democrats didn’t do it.

          • college debt relief to Americans with loans who make under $125,000 a year

          only a small amount

          • cut child poverty in half through the American Rescue Plan

          only for a short period of time

          • capped prescription drug prices at $2,000 per year for seniors on Medicare through the Inflation Reduction Act

          For a very specific group

          • imposed a 15% minimum corporate tax on some of the largest corporations in the country, ensuring that they pay their fair share, as part of the Inflation Reduction Act

          Pretty sure this was because of a global treaty

          • reauthorized the Violence Against Women Act through 2027

          Keeping things the same isn’t a improvement

          • halted all federal executions after the previous administration reinstated them after a 17-year freeze

          Getting things back to how they were previously isn’t an improvement.

          • $1.2 trillion infrastructure package to increase investment in the national network of bridges and roads, airports, public transport and national broadband internet, as well as waterways and energy systems
          • gave Medicare the power to negotiate prescription drug prices through the Inflation Reduction Act while also reducing government health spending
          • reduced healthcare premiums under the Affordable Care Act by $800 a year
          • signed the PACT Act to address service members’ exposure to burn pits and other toxins
          • signed the Respect for Marriage Act, requiring the U.S. federal government and all U.S. states and territories (though not tribes) to recognize the validity of same-sex and interracial civil marriages in the United States

          I don’t know enough about these to comment, on the surface they sound good but some are vague.

          • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
            1·
            16 days ago

            Well, he’s not a king or a wizard. It takes the whole government to get it done, and these were done under his administration.

        • jagged_circle@feddit.nlEnglish
          1·
          16 days ago

          yawn none of that matters if we destroy all life on earth with nuclear weapons. They’ve done nothing to address the existential theats

    • atro_city@fedia.io
      7·
      16 days ago

      I didn’t expect so many attempts to justify that only a violent option ever would do any good

      USAmericans love violence. Look at their media, it’s full of it. They’d rather see a gun advert or a story of some school children getting shot than a naked boob.

    • NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io
      6·
      16 days ago

      Harris didn’t promise incremental improvements though. In the days leading up to the election she only promised regression and stagnation.

      • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
        11·
        16 days ago

        I’m not sure where you got that idea. Did you not read her platform or listen to her speak?

        • SattaRIPEnglish
          9·
          16 days ago

          Did you not notice how democrats helped republicans shift the overton window further and further towards regressivism? There was never any incremental improvement, just concessions made to distract you from how both parties serve the same masters.

          • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
            9·
            16 days ago

            You and I don’t seem to agree on this. Maybe you’re just simplifying for the sake of this medium, so I’m missing some of your perspective.

            But you do seem to want a more progressive society. I hope your efforts are successful.

        • NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io
          6·
          16 days ago

          I mean she promised to shift to the right compared to Biden, and build that fucking border wall. How is "I’m so right wing I’ll include Republicans in my cabinet) anything other than regression?

          • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
            1·
            16 days ago

            … promised to shift to the right …

            Source, please?

            … include Republicans in my cabinet …

            If both sides are already the same, how is this a shift?

                • NoneOfUrBusiness@fedia.io
                  2·
                  16 days ago

                  Yes, I was talking about Harris there, hence “I am” and not “we are”. Also I never implied she’s the same as bona fide Republicans, but she was definitely a shift to the right from Joe Biden.

                  • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
                    2·
                    16 days ago

                    I interpreted you putting those words in her mouth as you saying she’s as right wing as the other side.

        • jatone@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
          1·
          16 days ago

          Yes, and they’re spot on with their analysis. not a single one of her policies addressed the systemic issues afflicting our society atm. they were all small, pointless motions that would have not helped resolved the crippling wage suppression, the lack of decent health care, our dying climate, etc. reminder: harris wanted khan gone as well. and supported a genocide. she can go get bent as far as we’re concerned.

          As being shown this week if harris came out for health care reform in a big way like bernie she probably would have won. something the left wing has been telling you twits for over a decade. stop trying to defend the indefensible shit stains that harris and biden were.

    • Olgratin_Magmatoe@lemmy.worldEnglish
      6·
      16 days ago

      Start murdering the powerful capitalist oligarchs which will lead to zero improvements in healthcare and society

      That implies a trend instead of a one off like this. A trend would absolutely ultimately lead to improvements. The oligarchy that rules us isn’t listening to polite letters and protests asking them to change.

      But if they discover that their actions lead to great personal risk, they’ll quickly change their actions to avoid the risk. That means lower (fair) pay for the CEOs/stockholders. That means an end to the scamming they do through insurance. That means an end to price gouging in the grocery store.

      The reason everything is shit (aside from the destruction of the middle class and housing crisis, which is itself caused by the oligarchy), is that the oligarchy is brazen and unafraid of risk in their wealth extraction.

      Does that really mean we don’t try any other options?

      That’s what we’ve been doing for the last two decades, and it’s got us basically nowhere.

      • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        16 days ago

        That doesn’t rule out holding them accountable via a government that works for us. Having that (or working towards that) was too boring for Americans this time. But if we had that, I’m sure the rich would be at least as scared of government guns as you say they’d be of increased vigilante guns.

          • Zachariah@lemmy.worldEnglish
            1·
            16 days ago

            Could be better. Could be worse. Still think it’s worth trying in addition to anything else we try.

        • jagged_circle@feddit.nlEnglish
          1·
          16 days ago

          More like option 1 literally wasn’t an option on the paper. Stein was literally sued off many State’s ballots, unfortunately.

          For option 1 to be achievable, first we need rank choice voting and abolition of the electoral college. I honestly dont understand why this didn’t pass in Colorado, except maybe successful disinformation campaigns.