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Tweet Facebook Mail A message left at the scene of a health insurance executive's fatal shooting — "deny," "defend" and "depose" — echoes a phrase commonly used to describe insurer tactics to avoid paying claims. The three words were written on the ammunition a masked gunman used to kill UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson , according to two law enforcement officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday. They're similar to the phrase "delay, deny, defend" — the way some US lawyers describe how insurers deny services and payment, and the title of a 2010 book that was highly critical of the industry. READ MORE: Police release photos after CEO shot to death with inscribed bullets in New York This undated photo provided by UnitedHealth Group shows UnitedHealthcare chief executive officer Brian Thompson. (AP Photo/UnitedHealth Group via AP) (UnitedHealth Group) Police haven't officially commented on the wording or any connection between them and the common phrase. But Thompson's shooting and the messages on the ammunition have sparked outrage on social media and elsewhere, reflecting a deepening frustration Americans have over the cost and complexity of getting care. This combination of images provided by the New York City Police Department shows the suspect sought in the the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside a Manhattan hotel where the health insurer was holding an investor conference, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024. (New York City Police Department via AP) (New York City Police Department) What does the phrase mean? "Delay, deny, defend" has become something of a rallying cry for insurance critics. The terms refer to insurers delaying payment on claims, denying claims and defending their actions. The phrase has been used to describe many types of insurers — auto, property, and health. "The longer they can delay and deny the claim, the longer they can hold onto their money and they're not paying it out," said Lea Keller, managing partner at Lewis and Keller, a North Carolina-based personal-injury law firm. "Delay, Deny, Defend" is also the title of a 2010 book by Jay Feinman that delves into how insurers handle claims. "All insurance companies have an incentive to chisel their customers in order to increase profits," says an excerpt on the book's website. READ MORE: 'A third nuclear age is upon us': Military expert's chilling warning The New York Police Department released photos on Thursday, December 5, 2024, asking for the public's assistance in identifying a "person of interest" in the shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. (NYPD) How does the phrase relate to UnitedHealthcare? UnitedHealthcare provides coverage for more than 49 million Americans and brought in more than $281 billion in revenue last year as one of the nation's largest health insurers. UnitedHealthcare and its rivals have become frequent targets of criticism from doctors, patients and lawmakers in recent years for denying claims or complicating access to care. Critics say insurers are increasingly interfering with even routine care, causing delays that can, in some cases, hurt a patient's chances for recovery or even survival. READ MORE: How a Sydney man turned a side hustle into a six-figure income The UnitedHealthcare headquarters in Minnetonka, Minn., lowered its flags to half-staff on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in honor of CEO Brian Thompson, who was fatally shot outside a hotel in New York. (Kerem Yücel/Minnesota Public Radio via AP) (Minnesota Public Radio) What is the criticism of insurers? Doctors and patients have become particularly frustrated with prior authorizations, which are requirements that an insurer approve surgery or care before it happens. UnitedHealthcare was named in an October report detailing how the insurer's prior authorization denial rate for some Medicare Advantage patients has surged in recent years. The report from the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations also named rivals Humana and CVS. Insurers say tactics like prior authorization are needed to limit unnecessary procedures and prevent the overuse of care to help control costs. Frustrations extend beyond the coverage of care. Expensive breakthrough medications to slow Alzheimer's disease or help with obesity are frequently not covered or have coverage limits. "Many Americans view these companies as driven by profit rather than a commitment to serve their customers," said Mario Macis, a Johns Hopkins economist who studies trust in the health care system. "And this creates a big disconnect." Members of the New York police crime scene unit investigate the scene outside the Hilton Hotel in midtown Manhattan where Brian Thompson, the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, was fatally shot on Wednesday, December 4, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Stefan Jeremiah) What reactions have emerged on social media? Anger and vitriol against health insurers filled social media in the wake of Thompson's killing. Users' reactions — and in many cases jokes — populated comment sections teeming with frustration toward health insurers broadly and UnitedHealthcare in particular. "I would be happy to help look for the shooter but vision isn't covered under my healthcare plan," one comment read on Instagram. "Thoughts and prior authorizations!" wrote another user. How do Americans feel about insurers? In the US health care system, patients get coverage through a mix of private insurers such as UnitedHealthcare and government-funded programs such as Medicaid and Medicare. That can prove particularly frustrating for doctors and patients because coverage often varies by insurer. Polls reflect those frustrations with the health care system in general and insurance companies in particular. About two-thirds of Americans said health insurance companies deserve "a lot of blame" for high health care costs, according to a KFF poll conducted in February. A 2023 KFF survey of insured adults found that most give their health insurance an overall rating of "excellent" or "good" — but a majority also said they experienced a problem using their insurance in the previous year. That included denied claims, provider network problems and pre-authorization problems. Nearly half of insured adults with insurance problems said they were unable to resolve them satisfactorily. DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP : Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play .Fools wouldn't touch these 5 FTSE 350 flops with a bargepole – how come I own 3 of them? The content of this article is provided for information purposes only and is not intended to be, nor does it constitute, any form of personal advice. Investments in a currency other than sterling are exposed to currency exchange risk. Currency exchange rates are constantly changing, which may affect the value of the investment in sterling terms. You could lose money in sterling even if the stock price rises in the currency of origin. Stocks listed on overseas exchanges may be subject to additional dealing and exchange rate charges, and may have other tax implications, and may not provide the same, or any, regulatory protection as in the UK. When investing, your capital is at risk. The value of your investments can go down as well as up and you may get back less than you put in. You're reading a free article with opinions that may differ from The Motley Fool's Premium Investing Services. Become a Motley Fool member today to get instant access to our top analyst recommendations, in-depth research, investing resources , and more. Learn More . Three FTSE 350 flops have been stinking out my portfolio, so I didn't need reminding that I made a costly error buying them. But that's what I got last week, when my fellow Motley Fool writers named five FTSE 350 companies they thought had further to fall. My three flops were... Harvey Jones
Peak U.S. Exceptionalism?By Steve Contorno and Kristen Holmes for CNN Donald Trump once publicly speculated that Time would never name him the news magazine's "Person of the Year." Now, the honour will be bestowed on him twice. Time will name Trump as this year's choice on Thursday, recognising the president-elect as the individual or group deemed to have wielded the greatest influence on global affairs "for good or for ill." To celebrate the unveiling of the magazine cover, Trump will ring the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange, a source familiar with the matter told CNN. Trump sat for a wide-ranging interview with the magazine last month. Time declined to comment. Trump's 2024 selection mirrors his first recognition in 2016, when Time named him Person of the Year after his unexpected rise to the presidency. This time, the unveiling caps a remarkable comeback and a resurgence that has the potential to upend modern American politics. Despite the magazine's dwindling circulation, Time's Person of the Year remains an annual cultural touchstone and the distinction has become an obsession of sorts for Trump throughout the years. A Time cover naming him Person of the Year in 2009 hung in several of his golf clubs, The Washington Post reported nearly a decade later, though no such issue was ever printed. Through his widely followed Twitter account, Trump regularly weighed in on the annual selection and amplified accounts suggesting it should be him. He criticised the magazine in 2011 for picking "The Protester" in a nod to the revolutions breaking out across the Arab world and the Occupy movement in the US. A year later, he said Time had "lost all credibility" because it failed to list him among its 100 most influential people of the year. Trump has also privately complained about the choices, in particular when Taylor Swift won in 2023. Trump has often been fixated on the power the pop star wields and posted, "I hate Taylor Swift," on social media earlier this year after she endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris. Over time, the title became a symbol of the mainstream fame and respect Trump sought out but appeared out of reach. In 2015, when the magazine named then-German Chancellor Angela Merkel its Person of the Year, he wrote on Twitter, "I told you @TIME Magazine would never pick me as person of the year despite being the big favorite," before adding: "They picked person who is ruining Germany." Even after Time named Trump its person of the year in 2016 - which he called "a great honour" on social media - he continued to closely monitor the results. The following year, Trump claimed he was in the mix for the distinction again but wouldn't agree to an interview and photo shoot. Time disputed his version of events. Despite his regular criticism of the media, Trump has regularly granted access to legacy outlets - including Time . He sat down for an extended interview in April of this year with the magazine at his Palm Beach club. Harris turned down a similar opportunity, the magazine's owner said in October. Over the decades, the title has been granted to a wide array of figures, from heads of state and activists to entrepreneurs and, in some instances, brutal authoritarian leaders. Every US president since Franklin Delano Roosevelt, except Gerald Ford, has been named Person of the Year at least once. President Joe Biden and Harris were co-honorees after they defeated Trump in 2020. Members of Trump's family are expected to attend the Thursday event, including Ivanka Trump, according to a source familiar with planning. It marks a rare public appearance for the president-elect's daughter, who served as a senior adviser during his first term. - CNNEgypt seizes hundreds of ancient artefacts 'stolen' from sea floor
When Donald Trump ’s former national security adviser John Bolton appeared on CNN Friday night, he didn’t hold back when commenting on Trump’s pick for his counterterrorism director. “ Sebastian Gorka is a con man,” Bolton told host Kaitlan Collins . “He needs a full-field FBI background investigation about his educational claims and things like that,” he added. “I think he is a perfect example of somebody who owes his position purely to Donald Trump, he doesn’t display loyalty, he displays fealty, and that’s what Trump wants.” Boltson said Trump “doesn’t want Gorka’s opinions.” “He wants Gorka to say, ‘Yes, sir,’ and I am fully confident that’s exactly what will happen, no matter what it is Trump says,” Bolton argued. To hear Trump put it, Gorka has been a “tireless advocate for the America First Agenda and the MAGA Movement” since 2015, according to the president-elect’s announcement on Friday. Gorka, who was born in the UK to Hungarian parents, is “a legal immigrant” with “more than 30 years of National Security experience,” Trump said. What Trump neglected to mention was that Gorka was pushed out of his White House role as a strategist to the president in his first administration. Divisive and combative as he staunchly defended Trump, Gorka was one of the main backers of the then-president’s ban on refugees and people from several Muslim-majority countries. Gorka’s views on Islam have been a source of controversy — specifically, comments he has made about violence being an intrinsic part of the Islamic faith. His academic credentials have also been questioned, as Bolton suggested on CNN. “Obviously he’s not the expert he claims to be — obviously,” Hungarian newspaper editor Gabor Horvath told NBC News in 2017. “He got his master’s degree and his PhD from the Corvinus University in Hungary. The Corvinus University is not a center for national security studies, certainly not internationally recognized studies of this kind,” he added. An op-ed in The New York Times once referred to him as “ The Islamophobic Huckster in the White House .” Trump’s then-White House chief of staff John Kelly reportedly pulled Gorka’s security clearance when he was on vacation, making it impossible for him to do his job, HuffPost noted at the time. This time around, Trump has suggested sidestepping the background check process usually conducted by the FBI to get his nominees and appointees into their expected roles. Gorka has dismissed the threat of white nationalism, and instead argued that Islamist extremists constituted the biggest threat to the US. His supposed ties to the Nazi-connected Hungarian political group Vitezi Rend have also worried some during his first short stint in the White House. The group collaborated with the Nazis during the Second World War and reformed following the end of the country’s Communist government in 1989, according to HuffPost . Jewish outlet The Forward reported in March 2017 that Gorka was a member of the group. Gorka wore the group’s insignia at Trump’s first inaugural ball, later saying that the medals he wore belonged to his father, who was handed them as “a declaration for his resistance to [Communist] dictatorship,” Gorka told Breitbart , one of his former employers. Before coming to the US in 2008, Gorka moved to Hungary in 1992 and worked for the country’s Ministry of Defense before becoming an adviser to Prime Minister Viktor Orban in 1998. Gorka ran for mayor in the small town of Piliscsaba in 2006, coming in third place. Several members of the community told NBC News that he was a member of Vitezi Rend; one of the group’s leaders told CNN that the organization was never connected to the Nazis and that Gorka was not a pledged member. Gorka became a US citizen in 2012, which made it possible for him to work for the federal government. He lasted about eight months in the White House before he was forced to leave. He claimed he resigned, a version of events disputed by the Trump White House. “Sebastian Gorka did not resign, but I can confirm he no longer works at the White House,” a White House official told several news outlets at the time. After his departure, Gorka became a political and counterterrorism commentator on right-wing media, with his own radio show and frequent appearances on Fox News and Newsmax. The 54-year-old pugilist is well-known for his aggressiveness towards the press, often telling reporters to “take a long jump off a short pier,” as Politico noted. “I wouldn’t have him in any US government,” Bolton told CNN. “Fortunately, it’s not the highest position he had been mentioned for,” he added. “But I don’t think it’s going to bode well for counterterrorism efforts when the [National Security Council’s] senior director is somebody like that. ... But the questions of who are the deputy secretaries, who are the undersecretaries, and so on, is also going to tell us a lot about who’s actually running the government.”
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