Americans Have Little Sympathy for Murdered Health Insurance Exec

Across social media, the response to the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO was contemptuous of the industry he represented

The fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a midtown Manhattan hotel on Wednesday morning was a shock to the city and the nation. But as police hunted for the missing gunman in what they called a “premeditated, preplanned, targeted attack,” social media erupted with contempt for the health insurance industry he represented — and his company in particular.

“Saw mainstream news coverage about the killing of the CEO of United Healthcare on TikTok and I think political and industry leaders might want to read the comments and think hard about them,” wrote political activist Tobita Chow in a post on X, formerly Twitter. In screenshots he shared, TikTok users reacted to the story with blistering references to the costly and often unnavigable for-profit U.S. health insurance system. “Sending prior authorization, denied claims, collections & prayers to his family,” wrote one.

“As someone covered under UnitedHealthCare I can completely understand the actions taken,” wrote an X user replying to a news link about Thompson’s murder “being investigated as a possible hit,” according to a statement from law enforcement. “Did he have a pre-existing condition?” asked another. And under an ABC News TikTok on police officers’ efforts to find the killer, a user asked, “Why are they investigating this?”

“Got a push notification to exercise caution because the United Healthcare shooter is still at large,” noted standup comic Samantha Ruddy in her own X post. “I personally do not feel like I am on the shooter’s radar because I am not the CEO of a highly divisive multi billion dollar insurance company.”

Thompson’s violent death outside a hotel where UnitedHealthcare was hosting an investor conference didn’t just prompt scathing jokes but heated criticism of the insurer he had helmed since 2021. One image that made the rounds online was a chart from the personal finance website ValuePenguin, which found that UnitedHealthcare denies 32 percent of all in-network claims relating to individual health insurance plans — twice the industry average. Some pointed to headlines describing how UnitedHealthcare has used an allegedly faulty AI algorithm to assess claims and deny care for seriously ill patients on private Medicare Advantage plans, as described in an ongoing class-action lawsuit brought by the estates of two deceased people who were denied coverage for their care at an extended-care facility.

Among those who amplified that story was right-wing podcaster Tim Pool, suggesting that Americans across the political spectrum can find rare consensus when it comes to disdain for their free-market health care system. “It’s actually kind of touching that the one thing that can bring together our fractious and disunited country is celebrating the assassination of a health insurance CEO,” wrote University of Virginia historian David Austin Walsh on X.

Still, a few dissenters tried to shame anyone making light of the slaying. Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, who unsuccessfully challenged President Joe Biden for the 2024 Democratic Party presidential nomination, drew an odd comparison to Israel‘s ongoing bombardment of Gaza and Lebanon. “Seems like leftists opposed to killing terrorists in the Middle East support killing CEOs in Midtown Manhattan,” he fumed on X, adding, “Sick.” Both Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, where UnitedHealthcare is based, shared statements of condolence.

While the shooter’s identity and motive are presently unknown, Thompson’s wife, Paulette Thompson, told NBC News that he had received threats and that they may have involved issues with a customer’s “lack of coverage.” The NYPD has released surveillance images of the suspect, who was masked and wearing a black jacket with a gray backpack, and have offered a $10,000 reward for information regarding the homicide.

Another ongoing lawsuit against UnitedHealthcare’s parent company, UnitedHealth Group, named Thompson along with two other top executives. A pension for firefighters in the city of Hollywood, Florida, filed the securities fraud class action earlier this year, accusing Thompson and his colleagues of selling $120 million of their UnitedHealth shares after learning of a U.S. Justice Department antitrust investigation of the company — but before the probe became public.

Between coverage of such alleged profiteering, UnitedHealthcare’s grim reputation, and disclosures of the millions the company spends on lobbying and Thompson’s $10 million salary, there was hardly a shortage of material for vicious riffs. “It’s no surprise that gallows humor is responding to the assassination of a gallows business model CEO,” observed Dr. Steven Thrasher in a post on X. A professor at Northwestern University’s Medill School, Thrasher is the author of The Viral Underclass, a book about inequalities in health care that determine who has privileged access to medical resources. “Health insurances lets ghouls decide whether live or die based upon how much your life or death will affect shareholder value.”

For once, too, it seemed that no extremist factions were quick to blame the murder on ideological opponents, as they typically have in the wake of high-profile shootings throughout the U.S. in recent years (save one Fox News commentator who suggested the NYPD hadn’t yet located the shooter because they were too busy dealing with immigrant crime). Online influencers known to shape a narrative before the facts emerge instead proved willing to wait and see where the case would lead. Within the feverish climate of social media, this made for an unfamiliar sort of restraint — almost as unusual as the street homicide of an American businessman.