Luigi Mangione, the 26-year-old suspect in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, wrote extensively about a severe back condition that he claimed caused him excruciating pain in a series of archived postings from a now-deleted Reddit account.
Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny told Fox News on Tuesday that the NYPD is currently investigating if the shooting was caused by a refused insurance claim associated with that injury.
On his social media, he was sharing an X-ray that showed many screws being driven into his spine. According to Kenny, in several of his works, he talked about how tough it was to sustain that damage. Therefore, we’re investigating if the insurance company rejected one of his claims or failed to provide him with the best possible assistance.
According to experts, health insurance’ refusal to cover cancer therapy, surgery, or other life-saving treatments is a common source of annoyance for many Americans and a potentially fatal issue for others.
According to a 2023 poll by KFF, a nonprofit organization that studies health policy issues, almost 60% of insured adults encounter difficulty when utilizing their insurance, such as insurers refusing to pay for care.
Those with commercial or employer-based health insurance are more likely to have their care denied than those with public insurance, such Medicare and Medicaid. Approximately one out of every five insured adults who seek emergency services had their claim rejected.
Dr. Adam Gaffney, a critical care specialist at the Cambridge Health Alliance in Massachusetts, stated that it is impossible to fully comprehend the extent of the issue.
“The Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, has some transparency rules, but private insurers are generally not required to publicly disclose data on denied claims in the U.S.,” he said. Nearly 17% of in-network claims for individuals with Obamacare coverage were rejected in 2021, according to a different KFF research released last year.
According to Gaffney, people and their physicians frequently have to choose between a variety of insurance plans, each with unique restrictions and a list of what is covered, in order to ascertain whether they will be able to receive the care they require.
According to Gaffney, there is a great deal of ambiguity for both patients and physicians on what is covered, what medications can be started, what care will be authorized, and what will be prohibited. Additionally, medical practices have a great deal of administrative work to do in order to prove that care is required in order to be approved.
He continued, “You can see how that kind of creates a degree of anarchy.”
A CommonWealth Fund survey found that nearly three out of five persons who were denied coverage reported that this caused a delay in their care.
According to Gaffney, patients may not consider appealing when they are rejected, leaving them with medical debt.
According to polls, people may not aware they have the right to do so or that it’s an option that can make a difference, which is why they don’t appeal.
People with lower incomes tend not to appeal as much: Less wealthy people were much less likely than their richer counterparts to appeal coverage denials, according to a study published in the Journal of Health Politics, Policy, and Law in August.
Many members of the public have long been incensed by denied claims, according to Arthur Caplan, head of the medical ethics division at NYU Langone Medical Center in New York City.
He pointed out that it’s not just adults who face it; insurance companies frequently deny coverage to youngsters, especially those who require costly procedures like gene therapy.
People do not consider our health care to be a right. “You have to earn it,” Caplan remarked. The shooting revealed this seething cauldron.
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