Had a patient come in yesterday whose medication needed a PA because the dose was increased from 1QD to 2QD, and boy howdy was he mad about it... My coworker who was helping him kept adding levity to the conversation and some awkward laughs, but you could tell this man was pissed at his insurance company and - by association - us. Then he came out with the quote in the title: "This is why people are shooting CEOs."

I've said this to colleagues and my partner and I'll say it here too. While the UHC instance was bold, well thought out, and well executed, I fear it may embolden the less... intelligent to do similar things to those in lower ranks or the middle men in these situations. I have only felt fear since the UHC CEO shooting, because I live in an area where people are uneducated, quick to enrage, and are easily impressed upon by ideals of making things better with violence.

Call center employees, pharmacy staff, medical personnel... We have no control over what the insurance companies will or will not cover. And yet we receive the most flack from patients when we try to explain to them that. What's stopping those patients from becoming violent?