In the wake of updates about Luigi Mangione’s trial, who is charged with state and federal crimes for the killing of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, there is still much to be said about the state of the U.S. healthcare system.
To speculate on the motive in Thompson’s murder, it does not feel too far off to assert that a person was driven to such exasperation and extremes that they felt a violent statement would be the most effective way to be heard. These tragedies are not something to be addressed once, brushed under the rug and never to be discussed again. These issues demand careful, intentional attention and reform, or people will continue to die at the hands of a system that generates political violence out of desperation and despair from a system that chooses not to listen.
Mangione’s case raises the question: What is the fractured condition of healthcare policy across the U.S. that would motivate a person to commit such an extreme act of political unrest?
When the conversation refuses to move past grievances, past winning the debate, and into more constructive, comprehensive understanding and changes, it is then that the cycle is doomed to repeat itself. We can see this clearly within our very own American Nightmare: school shootings, where, regardless of how many children and educators die, policymakers have nothing more to offer than “thoughts and prayers,” and maybe banning guns from specifically transgender individuals (about 1% of the population aged 13 and above, by the way).
Much like the little help “thoughts and prayers” offer people dying in mass shootings, Thompson’s death demands reform in the state of our healthcare system. Repeating instances of political violence against elites demands we move beyond partisan bickering and aimless waiting for the news cycle to replace itself with the next heinous crime.
Healthcare, being a business, will never be in the best interest of the patient. When did the honorable act of treating ailments, improving people’s quality of life and saving lives become more driven by extrinsic, for-profit incentives? Probably when the work of healthcare professionals became swamped with considerations of insurance coverage and how the patient will pay for their lifesaving treatment. As a result of the headache that is insurance, healthcare workers must dedicate less of their energy to actual treatment and medicine; when shouldn’t that be their only focus?
Car insurance payments in exchange for financial protection from unforeseen circumstances feel less irrational since not everyone drives. Health insurance, in contrast, feels like it’s designed to set people up for failure; everyone gets sick.
I’m inclined to begin with, “In a perfect world…” or “In my vision of a utopia…” but I will not, because being so quick to categorize radical ideas in a faraway fantasy land feels like exactly what capitalism and the greed that upholds it want me to do. Neighboring countries like Canada or a handful in Latin America actively disprove the idea that universal healthcare coverage is a utopian idea, because for them, it’s a mere reality.
Making sure everyone has food, water and shelter should not be a radical idea. The idea that someone should be able to receive adequate healthcare should they get sick, without going into debt and getting their life flipped upside down, should not be groundbreaking.
A 2022 report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau shows the lived tragedies of healthcare costs are not understated, wherein 58% of third-party debt tradelines recorded in collections were for a medical bill. In other words, on credit records, medical debt was the single most common reason people had an unpaid bill sent to a collection agency.
Concepts of change do not belong to a utopic fantasy world of “if only” because they are realistic concepts.
Like anyone, I feel the weight of my heart being slightly crushed, my long hours being lost, every time I look at my paycheck and see a hefty chunk of cash that gets clipped off for my percentage tax contribution. But that weight is a lot more crushing when those taxes are being invested in things like a $1.94 trillion defense spending budget, as opposed to investing in our community and the people around us. I would certainly feel less used selling my time away if that money was being invested in other community members’ lives.
Healthcare is an area where the U.S. can make real, cohesive improvement, as it’s the only industrialized nation without universal health insurance. Between healthcare and pervasive gun violence, the U.S. is woefully behind, clearly indicating that not having universal access to quality health is a choice, not a market failure.
I have heard far too many anecdotes about poor healthcare experiences from my community members throughout my life. Like my cousin, whose endocrinologist took weeks to get in touch about a diagnosis due to miscommunication between the doctor and the receptionist. Or my former coworker, who received a critical diagnosis over a rushed, undocumented phone call while driving.
It goes without saying these failures are magnified for women, people of color, immigrants and LGBT+ community members. These groups have a whole other layer of barriers being posed, with a simple lack of research and understanding of their unique healthcare needs.
While addressing the systemic issues is a long-term work in progress, the most immediate first step in this goal is to approach issues with a community-focused framework where government spending invests in its people, to make our healthcare, at the very least, reliably affordable.
