MAGA Hero or Villian?

MAGA nut Marjorie Taylor Greene is complaining that Liugi Mangione, the suspect in the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, will spark a new “political movement” that will replace Trumpism. Mangione’s social media includes praise of former Fox News host Tucker Carlson for having “brilliant insights” and other MAGA talking points about the decline in Christianity.

Mangione came from a wealthy and privileged family. High school valedictorian, Ivy League-educated data engineer, and a victim of debilitating back pain.

A handwritten note found with Mangione at the time of his arrest indicates that Thompson’s killing was motivated by anger about the health insurance industry, with the suspect allegedly justifying the homicide by writing, “The parasites had it coming.”

Mr. Thompson and two other UnitedHealth Group executives were accused of insider trading and fraud in a lawsuit filed by the Hollywood Firefighters’ Pension Fund. UnitedHealth Group was also the subject of a report by a Senate panel that documented insurers’ refusal to pay for the care of older people recovering from falls or strokes.

Mr. Thompson’s company was cited for a surge in denial rates of post-acute care for people on private Medicare Advantage plans, which increased to 22.7 percent in 2022 from 10.9 percent in 2020.

“We as doctors have been crying, screaming on the top of our lungs regarding how lots of insurance companies are denying claims on a daily basis,” Mathew said on “NewsNation Now.” He cited examples of patients being unable to obtain routine tests like mammograms without extensive bureaucratic hurdles.

UnitedHealthcare denies one in three claims, a trend symptomatic of a broader industry problem. The company reported $281 billion in revenue last year.