“Wanted” posters with the names and faces of health care executives have been popping up on the streets of New York. Hit lists with images of bullets are circulating online with warnings that industry leaders should be afraid. Read this article for free: Already have an account? To continue reading, please subscribe: * “Wanted” posters with the names and faces of health care executives have been popping up on the streets of New York. Hit lists with images of bullets are circulating online with warnings that industry leaders should be afraid. Read unlimited articles for free today: Already have an account? “Wanted” posters with the names and faces of health care executives have been popping up on the streets of New York. Hit lists with images of bullets are circulating online with warnings that industry leaders should be afraid. The apparent targeted killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson and the menacing threats that followed have sent a shudder through corporate America and the health care industry in particular, leading to increased security for executives and some workers. In the week since the brazen shooting, health insurers have removed information about their top executives from company websites, canceled in-person meetings with shareholders and advised all employees to work from home temporarily. An internal New York Police Department bulletin warned this week that the online vitriol that followed the shooting could signal an immediate “elevated threat.” Police fear that the Dec. 4 shooting could “inspire a variety of extremists and grievance-driven malicious actors to violence,” according to the bulletin, which was obtained by The Associated Press. “Wanted” posters pasted to parking meters and construction site fences in Manhattan included photos of health care executives and the words “Deny, defend, depose” — similar to a phrase scrawled on bullets found near Thompson’s body and echoing those used by insurance industry critics. Thompson’s wife, Paulette, told NBC News last week that he told her some people had been threatening him and suggested the threats may have involved issues with insurance coverage. Investigators believe the shooting suspect, Luigi Mangione, may have been motivated by hostility toward health insurers. They are studying his writings about a previous back injury, and his disdain for corporate America and the U.S. health care system. Mangione’s lawyer has cautioned against prejudging the case. Mangione, 26, has remained jailed in Pennsylvania, where he was arrested Monday. Manhattan prosecutors are working to bring him to New York to face a murder charge. UnitedHealthcare’s parent company, UnitedHealth Group, said this week it was working with law enforcement to ensure a safe work environment and to reinforce security guidelines and building access policies, a spokesperson said. The company has taken down photos, names and biographies for its top executives from its websites, a spokesperson said. Other organizations, including CVS, the parent company for insurance giant Aetna, have taken similar actions. Government health insurance provider Centene Corp. has announced that its investor day will be held online, rather than in-person as originally planned. Medica, a Minnesota-based nonprofit health care firm, said last week it was temporarily closing its six offices for security reasons and would have its employees work from home. Heightened security measures likely will make health care companies and their leaders more inaccessible to their policyholders, said former Cigna executive Wendell Potter. “And understandably so, with this act of violence. There’s no assurance that this won’t happen again,” said Potter, who’s now an advocate for health care reform. Private security firms and consultants have been in high demand, fielding calls almost immediately after the shooting from companies across a range of industries, including manufacturing and finance. Companies have long faced security risks and grappled with how far to take precautions for high-profile executives. But these recent threats sparked by Thompson’s killing should not be ignored, said Dave Komendat, a former security chief for Boeing who now heads his own risk-management company. “The tone and tenor is different. The social reaction to this tragedy is different. And so I think that people need to take this seriously,” Komendat said. Just over a quarter of the companies in the Fortune 500 reported spending money to protect their CEOs and top executives. Of those, the median payment for personal security doubled over the last three years to just under $100,000. Hours after the shooting, Komendat was on a call with dozens of chief security officers from big corporations, and there have been many similar meetings since, hosted by security groups or law enforcement agencies assessing the threats, he said. Winnipeg Jets Game Days On Winnipeg Jets game days, hockey writers Mike McIntyre and Ken Wiebe send news, notes and quotes from the morning skate, as well as injury updates and lineup decisions. Arrives a few hours prior to puck drop. “It just takes one person who is motivated by a poster — who may have experienced something in their life through one of these companies that was harmful,” Komendat said. ___ Associated Press reporters Wyatte Grantham-Philips in New York and Barbara Ortutay in San Francisco, contributed to this report. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Advertisement AdvertisementSolarEdge Technologies, Inc. SEDG shares are trading higher. The company announced plans to cease all activities of its energy storage division and reduce its workforce by about 500 employees. Here’s what you need to know . What To Know: In a new press release Wednesday, SolarEdge stated it was shutting down its energy storage division to prioritize its solar operations. The move will result in a workforce reduction of approximately 500 employees, largely located in South Korea. The closure is expected to result in quarterly operating expense savings of approximately $7.5 million, with full savings anticipated to be realized by the second half of 2025. In addition, the company plans to sell assets related to its storage division, including manufacturing facilities for battery cells and packs. “The decision to close our Energy Storage division was the result of a thoughtful analysis of our portfolio of businesses and product lines, industry trends, and the competitive environment,” said interim CEO Ronen Faier. “The measures also represent continued execution of two of our main priorities: financial stability through cost reduction, return to cash flow positivity and profitability; and focus on our core business lines of solar, PV-attached storage and energy management capabilities. I wish to thank our Energy Storage division employees for all of their efforts in building this business.” See Also: This Is What Whales Are Betting On Zscaler SEDG Price Action: At the time of writing, SolarEdge stock was up 8.69% at $14.88, according to data from Benzinga Pro . Image: via Pixabay © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
The New England Patriots entered Sunday’s matchup with the Miami Dolphins feeling like they were a team ready to turn a corner after a season’s worth of struggles. A 34-15 loss in Miami revealed just how much more work is left to do before they can make that pronouncement. Rookie quarterback Drake Maye struggled to make sense of things afterward but did make his own proclamation to his teammates. “I told some guys, just remember this feeling of really getting our butts whooped today, and it’s only up from here,” Maye said. There was plenty of bad football for the Patriots (3-9) to dwell on after losing for the third time in four games. It starts with self-inflicted mistakes, most notably committing 10 penalties for 75 yards, that left the team playing catch-up throughout the game. Maye completed 22 of 37 passes for 221 yards with 26 yards rushing but had a costly strip sack in the third quarter that led to a Miami score. It was his seventh turnover in three games. There also are big issues to work out for a Patriots defense that allowed Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to complete 29 of 40 passes for 317 yards and four touchdowns. RELATED COVERAGE Chiefs are no longer relishing close wins as the stress of the postseason push begins to mount Panthers’ close call against Chiefs has coach Dave Canales excited about the direction of the team Stroud accepts blame for Houston’s struggles after Texans lose to Titans New England coach Jerod Mayo said his team entered this week prepared for some tough film sessions with only Sunday’s matchup against Indianapolis left before its bye week. “Those are those hard meetings where you have to address the elephant in the room, but it’s no secret,” he said. “The good thing about the sport, it’s all recorded. You can go back and forth on it, but the film doesn’t lie.” What’s working It seems insignificant right now, but it was encouraging to see Maye end the game on some positive notes after Miami took a 31-0 lead. On the Patriots’ next possession, Maye connected on deep passes to Demario Douglas and Hunter Henry before capping the drive with a 38-yard TD pass to Austin Hooper. The AP Top 25 college football poll is back every week throughout the season! Get the poll delivered straight to your inbox with AP Top 25 Poll Alerts. Sign up here . What needs help Offensive line. This week brought regression for a group that had found some consistency after starting Ben Brown (center), Vederian Lowe (left tackle), Michael Jordan (left guard), Mike Onwenu (right guard) and Demontrey Jacobs (right tackle) in consecutive games. It evaporated against a Dolphins defense that sacked Maye four times. For the day, New England’s O-line was whistled for seven of the team’s 10 penalties. Stock up DE Christian Barmore. In his second game of the season, he notched his first sack, dropping Tagovailoa for a 2-yard loss in the third quarter. It’s a big milestone for Barmore, who was diagnosed with blood clots shortly after the start of training camp. Stock down Lowe. He was whistled for four penalties in the first half on Sunday: three false starts and a hold. He also allowed Zach Sieler to beat him for a strip-sack on Maye late in the third quarter that set up the Dolphins’ final touchdown of the day. Injuries The Patriots didn’t announce any injuries on Sunday. However, Lowe did seem to be bothered by a shoulder injury that limited his practice availability leading up to the game. Key number 7 — The number of Dolphins’ offensive plays that went for 15 or more yards against the Patriots. Next steps The Patriots host the Colts on Sunday. ___ AP NFL coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NFLUnited, Apple rolling out new way to track lost luggage with AirTags
Are you tracking your health with a device? Here’s what could happen with the dataMoody's Corp. stock outperforms competitors despite losses on the day