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Josh Jacob

MADBUSTERS: United Healthcare

A 60-second television advertisement for the world's largest health care company

2 min read

[0-4 sec | Quirky pizzicato string music]
A cozy living room. A fire roars as a dog stretches on the hearth. 

[4-9 sec]
Customer 1, a middle-aged black woman, sits in a wingback chair in the living room, as the viewer joins her in media res.
Customer 1: “I just think of choice… that feeling of ownership, like my health is truly in my hands.”

[9-16 sec]
Customer 2, a young white man, sits on a couch in front of his Funko Pop collection.
Customer 2: “I love the ‘Compare Plans’ tool. There are so many categories, I really make a day of it—it’s my Black Friday.”

[16-23 sec]
Customer 3, an older white man, stands around a kitchen table with his family.
Customer 3: “Well, we’ve always been a United family. My daddy had United, and I’ve had United my entire career.”

[23-33 sec]
Customer 2: “Open enrollment season is my favorite time of the year. I love sitting down and seeing what’s new in the health insurance space, whether it’s higher premiums or higher deductibles, higher copays or higher out-of-pocket maximums.”

[33-40 sec]
Customer 1: “There’s so much innovation coming out of our Nation’s Great Insurers, but I truly think United leads the pack. I couldn’t imagine ever switching.”

[40-55 sec | String music swells]
Customer 3: “Earlier in my career, I had less money, so I bought less insurance, but now, later in my career, I have more money, so I buy more insurance. And seeing that journey…”
He begins to cry as his son pats his shoulder. A line graph of Customer 3’s monthly take home pay over the past 40 years appears, revealing a gradual increase.
Customer 3: “...just reminds me of how far I’ve come.”

[55-60 sec | Strings reach a reflective coda as sleigh bells fade in]
A snowy New England town appears with the United logo overlaid in the corner.
ON SCREEN TEXT: From our family at United to yours… Wishing you a happy open enrollment season.