How UnitedHealthcare Came to Represent Everything Wrong With U.S. Health Insurance

Watch How UnitedHealthcare Came to Represent Everything Wrong With U.S. Health Insurance - Rizzle on Dailymotion

Transcript

00:00How UnitedHealthcare came to represent everything wrong with U.S. health insurance.

00:06UnitedHealthcare dominates 15% of the U.S. market, insuring over 29 million people.

00:13Its massive scale means every claim denial can affect thousands,

00:17making it the primary symbol of what Americans believe is broken in health care.

00:22From 2020 to 2022, UHC doubled denial rates for hospital care

00:30and multiplied nursing home rejections ninefold.

00:34Lawsuits allege its AI system makes mistakes 90% of the time,

00:39yet executives bank on patients rarely appealing denials.

00:43In December 2024, UHC CEO Brian Thompson was fatally shot by Luigi Mangione,

00:50a man angry over denied coverage.

00:53Found at the scene were shell casings etched with

00:56deny, defend, and depose, industry terms for avoiding payouts.

01:04The shooting unleashed years of pent-up rage.

01:08Many Americans shared stories of denied care and financial ruin.

01:13A poll found 10% viewed Mangione as a hero,

01:16especially among younger adults disillusioned by the system's failures.

01:21American families now pay an average $3,700 deductible,

01:26up from $2,500 a decade ago.

01:29Despite being the most expensive health care system among wealthy nations,

01:34U.S. citizens often receive less coverage and shorter life expectancy in return.

01:39Patients face endless hurdles.

01:42One woman battled a $1,000 billing error for six months.

01:47Another was denied $4,000 sleeves due to paperwork.

01:51The average claim dispute now requires 27 contacts,

01:55up from 16 in 2018.

02:01The fallout led to CEO Andrew Witte stepping down.

02:06UHC's stock plunged,

02:08and lawmakers began probing AI-driven denials.

02:12As trust collapses,

02:14public anger may finally pressure reforms

02:16that could shift the future of American health care.