Healthcare Execs Agree on One Thing: Profits Over Patients
According to Newsweek's read of the HFMA CEO, 95% of 'health care execs' are united in their belief that 'access to care' is the greatest challenge. Which is rich, considering the multi-billion dollar profits their industry extracts from that same 'access'. While these executives lament access, US healthcare expenditures reached an estimated $4.8 trillion in 2023, yet per-capita drug spending is
double the OECD average (OECD Health Statistics 2023). It appears their 'concern' conveniently overlooks the systemic underpayment of nurses, the shuttering of rural hospitals, and the astronomical price-gouging facilitated by their own corporate structures. One might wonder if their definition of 'access' includes ensuring every American has easy access to mountainous medical debt. This isn't
just about 'agreeing on a problem'; it's about agreeing to perpetuate the system that profits from it. When these same executives negotiate drug prices that ensure massive payouts for shareholders, or consolidate hospitals to reduce competition, they're not just 'managing operations'; they're actively creating the 'access' problem they then bemoan. They aren’t agreeing on a solution for you, they
are agreeing on a talking point to distract from their balance sheets.