Health insurers: the 800-pound gorilla in profit-driven US system [Video]

Last week’s slaying of UnitedHealthcare executive Brian Thompson has brought renewed attention to the widespread dissatisfaction with the American health care system, even as prominent leaders have condemned the killing.

Reports that the casings of the bullets fired by suspected shooter Luigi Mangione had the words “depose, deny, delay” inscribed on them prompted horror stories on social media about health insurers who use those very tactics to get out of paying for medical tests or cancer treatment.

Such fights with sick and ailing consumers are only one of the gripes many have with a health system that has also been criticized for mystery billing practices, opaque middlemen, confusing jargon and overpriced drugs.

While surveys suggest pharmaceutical companies may be even more disliked than health insurers, the latter occupies a more foundational role in the profit-driven American system that has evolved over recent decades.

On the continuum between totally private and …