Pallade Veneta - Murder, memes and snark: A killing lays bare US health care frustrations

Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare and the father of two teenage sons, was fatally shot in Manhattan on Wednesday, setting off a citywide manhunt.

Within moments of the news breaking, the internet erupted -- not with outrage, but with cheers and often tasteless reaction.

A Facebook post mourning the 50-year-old's death, shared by UnitedHealth Group, racked up more than 71,000 laugh emojis as of Friday -- dwarfing other reactions.

"My thoughts and prayers are out-of-network," became a recurring quip in comment sections, a biting nod to one of the most notorious reasons US insurance companies deny coverage: when a patient's provider isn't included in their plan.

Even doctors on one of the internet's largest forums for medical professionals joined the fray, posting satirical comments on the "medicine" subreddit that mimicked the jargon often found in insurance denial letters, such as "lack of prior authorization" and "failure to prove medical necessity."

Police have yet to suggest a motive for the killing and have declined to confirm reports claiming that the words "delay" and "deny" -- phrases commonly used to describe insurer tactics to avoid paying claims -- were etched onto shell casings found at the scene.

That hasn't stopped the public from venting long standing grievances with America's privatized and exorbitantly expensive healthcare system, with some even hailing the shooter as a "folk hero."

"No one deserves this," began a TikTokker, who went on to claim the insurer delayed covering her toddler's emergency brain surgery while she was nine months pregnant and awaiting the birth of her next child.

"This isn't to condone violence -- all that I'm saying is that I do not doubt for a second what the motive of that suspect was," she added.

Others online have fixated on the killer's looks, dubbing him the "hot assassin" or comparing him to movie stars Jake Gyllenhaal and Timothee Chalamet.

- Humor 'a coping mechanism' -

Universal health care is a cornerstone of every other developed country, but in the United States, coverage is fragmented among those with private insurance, government programs and a sizable uninsured population.

More than a decade ago, the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as "Obamacare," addressed some of the insurance system's most anti-consumer practices -- by, for instance, requiring coverage for individuals with pre-existing conditions.

However, huge gaps and deficiencies persist.

According to research and analysis group ValuePenguin, UnitedHealthcare denies about one-third of all claims, the highest rate of all insurance companies and double the industry average.

It is also the largest US health insurer, providing coverage for around 50 million people and taking in $16.4 billion profits in 2023, a year that Thompson was compensated more than $10 million.

The dark humor "is a coping mechanism for a population of people who feel powerless in our health care system," said William Flanary, a comedian and ophthalmologist who goes by the moniker "Dr Glaucomflecken" and enjoys a large online following for his medical satire skits.

While some have glorified the killer, a parallel movement of amateur sleuths has emerged, combing through clues to aid the police in the manhunt and sparking heated clashes between the two camps online.

One digital detective on X claimed to have scraped rental bike data and shared a theory on the killer's escape route, only to be bombarded with expletive-laden replies telling him to stay out of it.

H.Ercolani--PV