State of denial: How insurance companies impact health care today
January 11, 2026 / 9:19 AM EST / CBS News
TL;DR
- Traci Hurley describes the emotional toll of her husband Dan's cancer battle, exacerbated by fights with their insurance company over coverage denials.
- Despite both being physicians, the Hurleys faced numerous denials for tests, treatments, and medications deemed 'not medically indicated' by insurers.
- The business model of health insurance incentivizes denying care, as increased customer usage reduces company profits.
- A CBS News analysis found insurers denied 19% of in-network claims in 2024, with United Healthcare showing a significant drop in denials for federal plans.
- United Healthcare states their initial denial rate across all plans is 10% and clarifies that for self-insured employer plans, employers, not the insurer, dictate coverage.
- Dr. Elisabeth Potter highlights how insurance denials add costs and complexity, forcing extra surgeries and lengthy phone calls with medical directors.
- Jeannie Lee, a breast cancer patient, had to seek financial assistance for a necessary procedure that her insurance company refused to cover.
- Dr. Potter faced a defamation threat from United Healthcare after posting a video about an urgent call she received while operating.
- Miranda Yaver describes insurance denials as 'rationing by inconvenience,' noting that few patients appeal claims, even when they win a high percentage of cases.
- Traci Hurley advocates for holding insurance companies liable for malpractice when they deny life-saving care, similar to physician liability.
- After Dan Hurley's death, his widow received a bill for $80,000 for chemotherapy that had been pre-authorized but retroactively denied.