Without evidence of any kind, NBC Nightly News anchor recklessly linked Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield’s reversal of a coverage decision to the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Such a move does not render a public service, but instead further inflames the public discourse.
Watch the entire report, as aired on NBC Nightly News on Thursday, December 5th, 2024 (click “expand” to view the full transcript):
LESTER HOLT: While we still don't know the motive behind the killing of the CEO of UnitedHealthcare, the shocking crime has sent a chill through the insurance industry. And it comes as many Americans are voicing their frustrations over coverage denials. And tonight, one insurer is reversing course after facing major backlash. Ann Thompson reports.
ANN THOMPSON: An about-face from Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, reversing its plan to put time limits on anesthesia care in three states, an idea blasted by doctors.
GREGORY LEVITIN: I would love to have a one-on-one talk with the person that thought this was a good idea.
THOMPSON: And policymakers.
SEAN SCANLON: I think the outpouring of concern that I heard from my constituents was just shock...
THOMPSON: Connecticut Comptroller Sean Scanlon runs the largest healthcare plan in the state.
SCANLON: It’s not in the best interest of the patient to cut off their coverage for anesthesia in the middle of a surgery just because it’s reached some arbitrary time limit.
THOMPSON: New York Governor Kathy Hochul called it outrageous. Dr. Gregory Levitin is a vascular birthmark surgeon.
THOMPSON: Is this even workable in surgery?
LEVITIN: I don't see how this could be applied across the board. Anesthesiologists do not control the amount of time that is spent under anesthesia. A surgeon who is well-trained has a protocol or step-by- step process for performing a surgery. It’s not something that’s time-dependent but it’s technically dependent.
THOMPSON: In announcing the reversal, Anthem cited what it called “widespread misinformation,” and said “it never was and never will be the policy of Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield to not pay for medically necessary anesthesia services.” Relief for patients, doctors, and policy makers tonight. Ann Thompson, NBC News.
Holt needlessly opens the report with “While we still don't know the motive behind the killing of the CEO of UnitedHealthcare.” The fact is that we DON’T know the motive, triple-D scrawlings on the ammunition notwithstanding. In the end, the motive may well be related to a coverage decision, but we do not know that at this time. Therefore, it is absolutely reckless to come in and link that to a decision process that was underway well before the shooting.
Further aggravating the discourse is the fact that deranged former WashPost and New York Times columnist Taylor Lorenz had already directed violent discourse towards the CEO of Anthem. Per Fox News:
A chilling video released Wednesday showed Thompson being shot and killed at close range while outside the Hilton Hotel in midtown Manhattan, New York. The suspect is still at large.
Hours after news broke of his death, Lorenz wrote on the social media site Bluesky, "And people wonder why we want these executives dead," alongside a report about Blue Cross Blue Shield no longer covering anesthesia for the full length of some surgeries.
Lorenz went on to share images of Blue Cross Blue Shield CEO Kim Keck and reposted calls for other health insurance executives to be targeted.
NBC correspondent Ann Thompson’s package on the Anthem reversal didn’t even mention the Thompson shooting. It was a straight up piece on the decision, with impact reaction from physicians and politicians.
To tie the Anthem decision to the Thompson shooting does nothing but validate Lorenz’s insanity and encourage others to engage in, for lack of a better term, stochastic terrorism against health care executives.
Reasonable individuals can disagree on healthcare policy without calling for murder, or inferring that corporate policy decisions are the result of murder. To do so in the case of Anthem, as did Lester Holt, is absolutely reckless and dangerous.
