To the editor: Jamie Court is correct that killing the chief executive of UnitedHealthcare will not solve the problems that the craven leaders of these insurance companies created with their policies of delay and deny.
However, there’s finally a public discussion on the need to protect the insured when these seemingly soulless leaders breach their fiduciary duties and cause harm to those who in good faith invested in health insurance for peace of mind and care.
CEOs should be alarmed by the outrage toward them that this killing has unleashed, as people share their mistreatment at the hands of these companies. But will they work to solve the problems (unlikely), or will they circle the wagons?
So, Congress needs to act. The outraged need to put pressure on their elected officials to hold these companies responsible; maybe then their reprehensible conduct will be reformed.
Terry Shenkman, Culver City
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To the editor: Strictly speaking, insurance companies neither deny nor provide healthcare. They control money.
If you have enough money, or a doctor, hospital or pharmacy willing to treat the patient at a loss, you will receive care.
The overly complex system of insurance, care providers, hospitals, lawyers, regulators, researchers and drug companies — many of whom seek to make a profit — results in a huge overhead. With an aging population, the demand for service far exceeds the supply.
It’s got to be fixed, or the suffering will worsen.
Walter Maki, Torrance
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To the editor: Although inappropriate healthcare denials are a legitimate cause for concern, the greedy and the cavalier likely will not be deterred by the threat of expensive civil lawsuits that usually take many years to resolve and don’t result in a dime coming out of the executives’ personal pockets.
It is perhaps even more important to recognize that the main obstacle to good healthcare in our country is not such denials, but the barrier of affordability. Both must be addressed.
Hyman J. Milstein, M.D., Studio City
