You know whats Not on Roids, and that is the marketing budget for health insurance companies. Have you noticed that? I’ve seen a thousand Allstate commercials promising that you’re in good hands. That’s how normal business works: you find someone with a problem, you tell them you can fix it, and you make a profit. Simple!
But try finding a health insurance ad that says, “Hey, if you get cancer or need a hip replacement, we’ve got your back!” You won’t find it. Why? Because under federal law, health insurers aren’t actually allowed to make a profit by meeting the needs of people with medical problems. In fact, the system is designed so that no one—not the employers, not the marketplace plans, not even the Medicaid managed care plans—actually wants a sick person on their books.
It is the only industry on earth where the primary goal is to avoid the very thing the product is designed for. It’s like a bakery that hates bread or a car dealership that hopes you never actually drive. Every time someone with an expensive medical condition enters a plan, it’s treated like a plague has entered the building.
Now, a KFF survey will tell you that more than two-thirds of Americans rate their insurance as “good” or “excellent,” and only a tiny percentage—about 5 percent of people with health problems—rank it as “poor.” But let me tell you something about that tiny percent: they are furious.
When the CEO of UnitedHealthcare was shot, 95,000 people on X liked a post wishing the killer would never be caught, and 77,000 people responded to the companys bereavement message with laughing emojis. That is a level of hatred usually reserved for people who kick puppies or spoil movie endings. While most people are coasting along just fine, the ones who actually need the insurance part of health insurance feel like theyre fighting a war against a company that views their illness as a line-item liability.
