{"id":7457,"date":"2024-12-07T06:18:41","date_gmt":"2024-12-07T11:18:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/?p=7457"},"modified":"2024-12-07T06:18:59","modified_gmt":"2024-12-07T11:18:59","slug":"health-insurers-remove-executive-bios-images-from-websites-after-unitedhealthcare-ceo-killing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/?p=7457","title":{"rendered":"<h2><b>Health insurers remove executive bios, images from websites after UnitedHealthcare CEO killing<\/b><\/h2>"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><!--more--><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-7458\" src=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Screen-Shot-2024-12-07-at-6.16.58-AM.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"515\" height=\"435\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Screen-Shot-2024-12-07-at-6.16.58-AM.png 515w, https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Screen-Shot-2024-12-07-at-6.16.58-AM-300x253.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 515px) 100vw, 515px\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class=\"first-page-pdf\">\n<figure class=\"inside_story\">\n<div class=\"figure_content article-hero-img\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/imgproxy.divecdn.com\/RvwHODrHH_YZt8xeGlhPAY1ZEK74TKdgur08NqLl620\/g:ce\/rs:fill:1200:675:1\/Z3M6Ly9kaXZlc2l0ZS1zdG9yYWdlL2RpdmVpbWFnZS9HZXR0eUltYWdlcy0yMTg4MjM3NzQxXzEuanBn.webp\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 64em) 60vw, 100vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/imgproxy.divecdn.com\/t9P0_gDavpjd5d-8h9CwRXL1sjY-MLd1WnQsLC-XGJs\/g:ce\/rs:fill:400:225:1\/Z3M6Ly9kaXZlc2l0ZS1zdG9yYWdlL2RpdmVpbWFnZS9HZXR0eUltYWdlcy0yMTg4MjM3NzQxXzEuanBn.webp 400w, https:\/\/imgproxy.divecdn.com\/ADOUe9Ng_3Ao2z9eUL15yPa7mllVCGCRx8Z5Qj6Daxo\/g:ce\/rs:fill:800:450:1\/Z3M6Ly9kaXZlc2l0ZS1zdG9yYWdlL2RpdmVpbWFnZS9HZXR0eUltYWdlcy0yMTg4MjM3NzQxXzEuanBn.webp 800w, https:\/\/imgproxy.divecdn.com\/RvwHODrHH_YZt8xeGlhPAY1ZEK74TKdgur08NqLl620\/g:ce\/rs:fill:1200:675:1\/Z3M6Ly9kaXZlc2l0ZS1zdG9yYWdlL2RpdmVpbWFnZS9HZXR0eUltYWdlcy0yMTg4MjM3NzQxXzEuanBn.webp 1200w, https:\/\/imgproxy.divecdn.com\/YpNCkFwmnqaFrFUw-FdJU2yNuFw45wtoKDRYO_Xz-SA\/g:ce\/rs:fill:1600:900:1\/Z3M6Ly9kaXZlc2l0ZS1zdG9yYWdlL2RpdmVpbWFnZS9HZXR0eUltYWdlcy0yMTg4MjM3NzQxXzEuanBn.webp 1600w\" alt=\"Three police stand on the sidewalk scene of Brian Thompson's killing surrounded by yellow caution tape.\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" \/><\/div><figcaption class=\"inside_story_caption\"><span class=\"caption_text\">Police place bullet casing markers outside of a Hilton Hotel in Midtown Manhattan where United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot on Dec. 4, 2024.\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"source_text\">Spencer Platt via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row\">\n<div class=\"article-large-12 columns article-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"print-wrapper\">\n<div class=\" large medium article-body\">\n<div class=\"text-to-speech\"><button class=\"text-to-speech__button button\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"text-to-speech__button__icon\" src=\"https:\/\/www.healthcaredive.com\/static\/images\/audio_icon.svg?482016190122\" alt=\"\" \/>Listen to the article<span class=\"text-to-speech__button__audio-length\">6 min<\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<p>Major health insurers are deleting images of their top leadership from corporate websites or removing executive pages entirely following the brazen killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson earlier this week.<\/p>\n<p>Thompson, 50, was shot multiple times in midtown Manhattan on Wednesday in what appeared to be a targeted attack. Though many of Thompson\u2019s peers expressed grief, the killing set off a\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthcaredive.com\/news\/unitedhealthcare-ceo-brian-thompson-shooting-reactions\/734707\/\">morbidly gleeful celebration on social media<\/a>, where posters on sites like X and Reddit applauded and joked about the crime to vent frustration and anger with health insurers.<\/p>\n<p>The shooting and subsequent reaction has spurred healthcare companies to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2024\/12\/05\/ceo-protection-unitedhealthcare-new-york-shooting.html\">increase security around their executives,<\/a>\u00a0according to reports.\u00a0Such measures appear to be extending online, as major insurers scrub identifying details of top personnel from their sites.<\/p>\n<p>UnitedHealthcare\u2019s parent company UnitedHealth quickly\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.unitedhealthgroup.com\/page-not-found.html\">removed its executive leadership page<\/a>\u00a0after Thompson\u2019s death. Some of its peers have since followed suit:\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.elevancehealth.com\/who-we-are\/senior-leadership\">Elevance\u2019s senior leadership page<\/a>\u00a0is no longer online.<\/p>\n<p>Executive pages for a number of Blue Cross Blue Shield plans, including\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bluecrossnc.com\/about-us\/leadership\">in North Carolina<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bluecrossma.org\/aboutus\/company-leadership\">Massachusetts<\/a>, have also been deleted, while the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blues plans, removed\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bcbs.com\/about-us\">a link to its executive bios<\/a>\u00a0from its \u201cAbout Us\u201d page.<\/p>\n<p>Blues-branded plans operated by Anthem were embroiled in the social media firestorm stoked by Thompson\u2019s death this week, as commenters slammed an upcoming coverage policy to curtail anesthesia coverage for certain surgeries.\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/RaulPuddle\/status\/1864503968937680989\">Some posts threatened Blues executives<\/a>\u00a0unrelated to the change.<\/p>\n<p>Elevance, Anthem\u2019s parent company,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthcaredive.com\/news\/elevance-anthem-blue-cross-blue-shield-cancels-cap-anesthesia-coverage-surgeries\/734790\/\">canceled the policy rollout on Thursday<\/a>, citing \u201csignificant widespread misinformation.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.centene.com\/who-we-are\/leadership.html\">Centene<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cvshealth.com\/about\/leadership.html\">CVS, which owns Aetna<\/a>, have left executive biographies intact but removed headshots of their officers. Corporate governance pages for Cigna, Humana and Molina remained unchanged as of press time.<\/p>\n<p>CVS confirmed that the executive images had been removed, but a spokesperson declined to comment as to why. Elevance and Centene did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p>However,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/investors.centene.com\/2024-12-05-CENTENE-CORPORATION-TO-HOST-VIRTUAL-INVESTOR-DAY-ON-DECEMBER-12,-2024\">Centene cited Thompson\u2019s death in moving its investor day<\/a>\u00a0next week \u2014 originally scheduled to be an in-person conference in New York City \u2014 to a virtual-only event.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn the wake of the tragic loss of UnitedHealthare\u2019s CEO Brian Thompson, Centene\u2019s Investor Day will now be hosted virtually,\u201d the Thursday press release says.<\/p>\n<p>Police are still searching for Thompson\u2019s assailant as of Friday morning. Though the shooter\u2019s motivations remain unclear, evidence suggests that the killing may be tied to resentment against UnitedHealthcare or the health insurance industry at large.<\/p>\n<p>Thompson\u2019s widow, Paulette, told NBC News that her husband had received threats related to a lack of coverage. Words like \u201cdeny\u201d and \u201cdepose\u201d were found on round and shell casings at the scene, according to multiple outlets, which could be related to a phrase used to critique health insurers for avoiding covering medical care.<\/p>\n<p>Insurers do not publicly disclose their denial rates. However, UnitedHealthcare \u2014 by some metrics the largest private insurer in the U.S. \u2014 has come under scrutiny for its high rates of claims denials in recent years.<\/p>\n<p>On social media over the past few days, many posters have published\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Rainmaker1973\/status\/1864584332418941150\">screenshots of a proprietary analysis<\/a>\u00a0by personal finance website ValuePenguin finding that UnitedHealthcare denied 32% of claims in 2023 \u2014 twice the industry average. (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.valuepenguin.com\/health-insurance-claim-denials-and-appeals\">According to ValuePenguin\u2019s website<\/a>, an unnamed insurer disputed the denial rate on Thursday, one day after Thompson was shot.)<\/p>\n<p>Similarly, a Senate subcommittee investigation earlier this fall found\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthcaredive.com\/news\/medicare-advantage-AI-denials-cvs-humana-unitedhealthcare-senate-report\/730383\/\">UnitedHealthcare\u2019s denial rate for post-acute services<\/a>\u00a0in privatized Medicare Advantage plans increased from 8.7% in 2019 to 22.7% in 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Over the same time period, UnitedHealthcare\u2019s skilled nursing home denial rate increased ninefold.<\/p>\n<p>Thompson\u2019s colleagues and peers in the industry this week\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthcaredive.com\/news\/unitedhealthcare-ceo-brian-thompson-shooting-reactions\/734707\/\">remembered the executive as a kind and honest man<\/a>.\u00a0Many denounced violence against executives in healthcare, a sector that already struggles with\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.bls.gov\/opub\/ted\/2024\/health-care-and-social-assistance-had-562500-injuries-and-illnesses-in-2023-fewer-than-in-2022.htm\">an elevated risk of interpersonal harm<\/a>.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"image-right inside_story\">\n<div class=\"figure_content\">\n<div><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/imgproxy.divecdn.com\/Ogx4wUppzH0gaCdVMK4DXgezufoWRaAEivocn1_xQcI\/g:ce\/rs:fit:1600:0\/Z3M6Ly9kaXZlc2l0ZS1zdG9yYWdlL2RpdmVpbWFnZS9Ccmlhbi1UaG9tcHNvbi1oZWFkc2hvdC5wbmc=.webp\" alt=\"A headshot of Brian Thompson, the late CEO of UnitedHealthcare\" data-imagemodel=\"171279\" \/><\/div>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"inside_story_caption\">\n<div class=\"caption_text\">UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson<\/div>\n<div class=\"source_text\">Courtesy of UnitedHealth<\/div>\n<div class=\"clearfix\"><\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cThe people in our industry are mission-driven professionals working to make coverage and care as affordable as possible and to help people navigate the complex medical system,\u201d Michael Tuffin, the president and CEO of powerful health insurance lobby AHIP,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/michael-tuffin-0176a331_the-people-in-our-industry-are-mission-driven-activity-7270441124308082688-XN_7\">wrote on LinkedIn<\/a>\u00a0on Thursday. \u201cWe condemn any suggestion that threats against our colleagues \u2014 or anyone else in our country \u2014 are ever acceptable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Thompson, who is survived by his wife and two sons, had been with Minnetonka, Minnesota-based UnitedHealthcare for two decades, and served as CEO since 2021. The payer provides medical insurance to 50.7 million Americans and has brought in $224 billion in revenue year to date.<\/p>\n<p>In\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.unitedhealthgroup.com\/newsroom\/2024\/2024-12-5-uhg-statement-on-events.html\">an updated statement published Thursday night<\/a>, UnitedHealth said its current priorities are supporting Thompson\u2019s family, assisting law enforcement in the investigation and ensuring the safety of its employees.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhile our hearts are broken, we have been touched by the huge outpouring of kindness and support in the hours since this horrific crime took place,\u201d the statement reads. \u201cSo many patients, consumers, health care professionals, associations, government officials and other caring people have taken time out of their day to reach out. We are thankful, even as we grieve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>UnitedHealth has restricted comments on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/unitedhealthgroup\">a separate statement on Facebook<\/a>\u00a0expressing shock and sadness at Thompson\u2019s death.<\/p>\n<p>Roughly 75,000 people have commented a laughing emoji on the post.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>___<br \/>\nhttps:\/\/www.healthcaredive.com\/news\/health-insurers-remove-executive-bios-images-unitedhealthcare-ceo-killing\/734824\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7457","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7457","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7457"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7457\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7457"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7457"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateofthenation.info\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7457"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}