UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was a father, Midwesterner and well-liked executive. On Wednesday, he was killed in broad daylight in Manhattan – and quickly became a meme and source of ridicule on social media.
His killer is still on the loose.
“Thoughts and deductibles to the family. Unfortunately my condolences are out-of-network.” “Sympathy denied. Greed is considered a pre existing condition.”
Some were sickened by the comments: “The seemingly widespread online celebration of the assassination of the UnitedHealthcare CEO makes me feel despair for humanity. I get that healthcare is broken, but these reactions are truly sick.”
For some, it’s easy to see why people who don’t personally know Thompson might scoff at this tragedy. People are living out tragedies on a daily basis, on top of not being able to pay their healthcare bills whether they’re insured or not.
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The response is also reminiscent of the reactions from some when President-elect Donald Trump was shot earlier this year at one of his rallies, and when the Titanic submersible went missing last year with wealthy passengers aboard (all five people on the ship died).
People can hold several thoughts at once in situations of this nature. It can be sad that a human was killed, and sad that healthcare in this country is a burden for so many.
“The public is feeling very unheard, uncared for and unseen in our plights,” says Gina Moffa,…
