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2024, Crime, Guns, Health Care, Opinion

Apparent Employee Of United Healthcare Shares Her Experience Working For CEO Brian Thompson In Medicare Department

Go on girl.

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609 points

Krista Monroe, a former UnitedHealthcare employee who says she worked under CEO Brian Thompson in the Medicare department, shared a scathing account of the company’s internal practices in a now-viral video. Monroe alleges that the company’s policies were designed to maximize profits at the expense of patients, particularly the elderly. Her experience shines a light on how insurance companies exploit systemic flaws to deny essential care and leave patients struggling to survive.

“They would deny almost everything immediately, right, with very little to valid reason,” Monroe revealed in her video. “A lot of it was they banked on the fact that a lot of people were elderly, and if they made the process difficult enough, they would just say screw it and either pay for it or not get the service.”

Monroe’s allegations are a damning indictment of UnitedHealthcare’s business practices, highlighting tactics that included automatic denials, complex appeals processes, and reliance on patients’ inability to navigate these hurdles.

A System Designed to Deny

UnitedHealthcare operates a Medicare department because it is one of the largest providers of Medicare Advantage plans in the United States. These plans, offered through private insurers, are an alternative to traditional government-managed Medicare, providing services like prescription drug coverage and supplemental benefits. By managing a Medicare department, UnitedHealthcare taps into a lucrative market of senior citizens and disabled individuals, earning billions in federal funding while often controlling costs through strict prior authorizations, coverage limits, and denial practices. This system allows the company to profit from a federally subsidized program while playing a critical role in determining access to care for millions of Americans.

Monroe described a practice known as the “donut hole,” a Medicare policy gap where coverage for prescriptions stops until patients have paid a certain out-of-pocket amount. She recounted heartbreaking calls from patients unable to afford life-saving medications like insulin.

“Insulin is the one that used to be so heartbreaking because we would get these phone calls, and they would be like, I am going to be unalived without this medication,” she said. “I’m on a fixed income. I cannot afford $1,400 for a one-month prescription.”

Instead of providing meaningful assistance, employees were instructed to direct patients to manufacturer coupons or third-party services like GoodRx. Monroe shared the story of a patient with Lou Gehrig’s disease who faced insurmountable barriers to obtaining a necessary prescription, only to discover a cheaper generic option through her personal efforts.

“I literally googled an alternative if there was a generic alternative,” she recounted. “And lo and behold, do you know what? There was, and do you know how much money it was? It was like $20, $30 for a month’s supply.”

For going above and beyond to help this patient, Monroe was reprimanded by her superiors.

The Human Toll of Corporate Greed

Monroe didn’t hold back in addressing the emotional toll these practices took on both patients and employees. She described a system so devoid of empathy that patients were often driven to despair.

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“Could you imagine paying into insurance and…watching your kid, your spouse, your parent be unalived because you cannot afford these astronomical amounts that are not regulated at all? That’s enough to make a person snap,” she said.

Monroe’s final words in the video encapsulated the public’s frustration with corporations like UnitedHealthcare:

“If you play devilish games, you’re gonna get devilish prizes.”

Public Reaction

Here was some of the online reaction to her statements; it’s telling how bad the insurance company is as there seems to be a lot of people who have no very little sympathy or even empathy for CEO Brian Armstrong’s murder.  That is an indictment on United Healthcare more than it is on regular people who have been fucked over by insurance companies time and time again.

Related Stories on UnitedHealthcare

  1. UnitedHealthcare Accused of Denying Treatments as Profits Soar
    https://polinews.org/unitedhealthcare-accused-of-denying-treatments-as-profits-soar
    This article examines UnitedHealthcare’s policies that prioritize profits over patient care. It highlights how these practices have led to widespread public outrage and countless denied claims for essential treatments.
  2. Senators Slam UnitedHealthcare Over Medicare Advantage Denial Rates
    https://polinews.org/senators-slam-unitedhealthcare-over-medicare-advantage-denial-rates
    A Senate investigation uncovered a troubling spike in UnitedHealthcare’s denial rates for Medicare Advantage plans. The report exposes the devastating effects these denials have on patients and their access to necessary healthcare.
  3. Patients Share Horror Stories of Dealing with UnitedHealthcare
    https://polinews.org/patients-share-horror-stories-of-dealing-with-unitedhealthcare
    Heartbreaking personal accounts from patients reveal the chaos and despair caused by UnitedHealthcare’s claim denials. The article underscores the systemic problems faced by patients navigating the insurance giant’s red tape.
  4. Doctors Fight Back Against UnitedHealthcare’s Profit-Driven Policies
    https://polinews.org/doctors-fight-back-against-unitedhealthcares-profit-driven-policies
    This piece highlights the resistance from doctors fighting UnitedHealthcare’s exploitative practices. It sheds light on the challenges faced by healthcare providers trying to secure fair treatment for their patients.
  5. Why UnitedHealthcare Is the Most Hated Insurance Company in America
    https://polinews.org/why-unitedhealthcare-is-the-most-hated-insurance-company-in-america
    A deep dive into UnitedHealthcare’s reputation as the poster child for all that’s wrong with American healthcare. The article explores the company’s systemic issues, including profit-driven priorities and patient neglect.

Closing Thoughts

Monroe’s testimony serves as a stark reminder of the deep flaws in the American healthcare system. Her words have resonated with many who see her story as a microcosm of a broken system where profit trumps humanity. If this system is to change, stories like Monroe’s must inspire action, demanding accountability from corporations that prioritize wealth over well-being.

Featured image via screengrab and public domain

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Shay Maz

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Shay Maz has been a political writer for many years. This is a pseudonym for writing; if you need to contact her - you may do so here: https://x.com/SheilaGouldman

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