The murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson has triggered disturbing reactions across the world, with some Aussies claiming they’re not surprised by the atrocity due to the nature of America’s expensive health system.
Mr Thompson, 50, was gunned down on December 4 just outside the Hilton Hotel in Manhattan, where he was set to attend an investor meeting.
CCTV footage showed a masked assassin approach Mr Thompson from behind before gunning him down and casually walking away from the scene.
Police have since arrested and charged ‘anti-capitalist’ and Ivy League graduate Luigi Mangione, 26, over the alleged execution-style murder of the father-of-two.
Mr Thompson started at the health insurance provider in 2004, and has held multiple leadership roles including CEO of the company’s government programmes division.
The shooting made global headlines, with many ns saying they were not surprised by the murder.
‘There is frustration with the medical and health system in the US and I think that’s bubbling out,’ one Sydneysider told Daily Mail .
‘Something needs to be done. Not necessarily killing people but I think there needs to be a review.’
The man, who wished to remain anonymous, added people’s health and medical care were fundamental rights, but something which big corporations and insurers were exploiting for financial gain.
‘There’s got to be something in there over and above huge corporate profits… you’ve got common people on the streets suffering and seeing them and their loved ones die,’ he said.
He explained while he was ‘generally happy’ with ‘s health services, he had concerns it could follow America’s healthcare system.
Another woman told Daily Mail that she believed people were viewing the assassination as a form or ‘retribution’ for the inadequate access to basic healthcare.
‘I think Americans are very angry that their healthcare system is in such disarray and so many people can’t access basic healthcare which is really a human right,’ she said.
‘I do think some people are losing the thread that this was a human and (Mr Thompson) had a family and that (he) was not the entire decision maker for the whole system of healthcare.
‘Really this should be a government problem and should be tackled at a government level for the entire country. One person is not going to be the be-all and end-all.’
She said while there are opportunities for ‘s healthcare to improve, it was in a ‘much better state’ than in America.
Another Aussie man argued while murder was never good, the reaction the incident has received was a reflection on the state of America’s healthcare.
‘A lot of their population is fed-up with the way their country is running. You always hear stories about Americans having to pay a lot of money (for healthcare),’ he said.
‘I have been at St Vincent’s Hospital and had an American guy in there freaking out because he thought he was going to have to pay $40,000 to get a check-up. His face was pretty shocked when he found out it was covered.’
Other Aussies echoed similar sentiments online, claiming Mr Thompson’s death was a direct result of how healthcare and insurance companies treat people in America.
‘The little guy has been pushed around too much, now people are fighting back,’ one commented.
A second chimed: ‘This was bound to happen when your business is basically dealing with life and death, and your motive is profit and the law does not give adequate recourse or regulation, if that indeed was the motivation.’
A third added Mangione’s lawyer should put ‘the entire health insurance industry on trial’ and argue the 26-year-old was defending the public from a CEO who profited from ‘killing and bankrupting’ people.
UnitedHealthcare, which is the biggest health insurer by market share in America, was rocked by protests over the alleged systematic denial of pay-outs to patients earlier this year.
Analysis by ValuePenguin concluded UnitedHealthcare denied 32 per cent of claims, compared to the industry average for large health insurance companies of 16 per cent.
Mr Thompson was the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare’s insurance division, reporting $281billion in revenue last year and providing healthcare to millions of Americans.
The medical giant was set to announce bumper revenue and profits for the year before he was gunned down.
Last year alone, Mr Thompson received a $10.2million compensation package, including $1million in base pay, cash and stock grants.
Mr Thompson’s schedule was widely known, and witnesses have said the suspected gunman even knew which door Thompson was going to emerge from before opening fire.
Authorities arrested Mangione in McDonald’s Altoona, Pennsylvania after a worker and elderly patron spotted him and called police.
Mangione spent 10 days in Manhattan, staying in a local youth hostel after he allegedly fled the scene.
When he was arrested, police reportedly found him with a 3d-printed ghost gun similar to the one used in the murder, a gun silencer, four fake IDs and a manifesto.
The manifesto allegedly showed Mangione, who was his school’s valedictorian, was infuriated by the healthcare industry and its profits.
At the scene the murder, police also found three live bullets and three bullet casings which had the words ‘depose’, ‘deny’ and ‘defend’ written on them in permanent marker.
Online sleuths drew a comparison to the similarly titled 2010 book ‘Delay, Deny, Defend’ – which offers a scathing criticism of ‘why insurance companies don’t pay out and what you can do about it’.
Mangione was charged with murder by NYC officials after being detained by police in Pennsylvania.
His other charges include forgery, carrying a gun without a licence, tampering with records or identification, carrying ‘instruments of a crime’ and presenting false identification to law enforcement.
Mangione, who did not enter a plea and was denied bail, remains jailed in Pennsylania. He is set to face the Blair County Courthouse again on December 23.