"Potter has waged a relentless, sometimes lonely campaign against for-profit insurance companies through media appearances, books, a newsletter, and Capitol Hill lobbying."
I left a job in the payer world 5 months ago and shortly thereafter lost all passion for my much-loved 30+ year healthcare career. I've been frustrated by it ever since. Reading this article made me realize that I spent the last 6 years of my career (the only time working in payers) suffering vicarious trauma. Thank you to all who did and continue to speak out.
The industry needs to be scrapped but that alone would not address the affordability issue. Nurses in the USA make on average $122,000 while in Canada they earn the equivalent of $66,000 USD. The gulf in pay for specialists between the USA and Canada is even more extreme. How are lawmakers going to convince the millions of people that work in the healthcare sector to take a pay cut?
One answer is that there will not be a sector because there is only room for profit. Thus Leaving little funds for communities and providers that actually care for all of humanity. It is even happening with veterinary science. There is no money to teach and train, although billions every quarter go to United health group.
The practice of veterinary medicine has seen the relentless takeover by the approximately five major private equity firms. People wonder why they are being charged exorbitant fees for minor routine procedures - even vaccinations - formerly the affordable bread and butter income of clinics and the bedrock of preventative care for their pets. Private equity firms zoom in on the smaller clinics especially where the owner/founder is getting ready to retire. And very, very quickly the clinic owner gets some retirement chump change and not only does the clinic price list balloon - treatment is overseen to an oppressive degree by the new owner - a private equity firm. As are staff compensation and benefits. As for veterinary pharmaceuticals? Did you know that there are now PBMs for veterinary pharmaceuticals - and the price fixing for life-saving drugs is beyond unethical.
The truth is private insurance companies get too much blame. To put the healthcare cost debate into perspective consider that in 2023 it was estimated that USA spent $4.5 trillion dollars on healthcare. But the total profits for the entire private health insurance industry which includes United Healthcare only accounted for $45 billion of that humongous pie, or in otherwords 1%.
This data was retrieved by Deepseek AI and was sourced from the Center for Medical Services, the Kaiser Family Foundation, the American Medical Association and SEC Filings.
Wendell Potter is aiming his canon at the wrong target. Insurance companies are simply the tip of the iceberg. 99% of the problem is under the water. It's overpaid doctors. Overpaid nurses. Greedy hospitals. Private equity owned medical practices. Wasteful spending on prescription drugs that either don't provide benefit or actually harm people. It's the diet and lifestyles of Americans. It's the tainted food supply. The toxic PFAS and micro plastics that have tainted the water supply and raised cancer rates. It's the demographic burden of an aging society compromised of unhealthy, junk food eating, sedentary and over medicated boomers. Last but not least the source of the problem is having a third-payer, be it a private company or a governmental program insulate the consumers of healthcare from the direct financial impact of their lifestyle, diet and medical treatment choices.
We don't have a third-payer system for things like flat screen TVs or cars. If we did everyone would buy the most luxurious car and most expensive TV with their hypothetical "Free TV and Car Program" card.
Compare how the current auto insurance model works with the health insurance model. If you get a speeding ticket your auto insurance premium will get jacked up because it's an act of irresponsibility. But if you irresponsibly eat ultra processed sugary food and develop Type-2 Diabetes there is no penalty from the insurance company or government. The costs your irresponsible diet has borne are then redistributed across the entire insurance pool raising costs for everyone.
That's the absurdity of third-payer and single-payer healthcare systems. They completely ignore the fundamental precepts of human nature. There is no incentive for healthcare beneficiaries to act or behave responsibly. No incentive to scrutinize the benefits and risks of medical intervention their doctor may recommend based on his own conflicts of interest (i.e. gifts from Big Pharma and Medical Device sales people).
The current healthcare payment system has produced a disfigured healthcare landscape by suppressing market dynamics and preventing feedback loops. As long as this paradigm remains en force people will continue to become more unhealthy and healthcare spending will gobble up more of GDP.
I mentioned age briefly in one sentence and did so in a truthful manner. The Boomer generation's inclination for fast food and aversion to the home cooking traditions of their parents is responsible for significant portion of the current obesity and chronic disease epidemic.
And many thanks to those fighting for change.
Stop this enormous corporate welfare & vote in
Single payer health care
What insurers have turned into is sad, and beyond dangerous.
I fail to understand how they live with themselves.
I left a job in the payer world 5 months ago and shortly thereafter lost all passion for my much-loved 30+ year healthcare career. I've been frustrated by it ever since. Reading this article made me realize that I spent the last 6 years of my career (the only time working in payers) suffering vicarious trauma. Thank you to all who did and continue to speak out.
The industry needs to be scrapped but that alone would not address the affordability issue. Nurses in the USA make on average $122,000 while in Canada they earn the equivalent of $66,000 USD. The gulf in pay for specialists between the USA and Canada is even more extreme. How are lawmakers going to convince the millions of people that work in the healthcare sector to take a pay cut?
One answer is that there will not be a sector because there is only room for profit. Thus Leaving little funds for communities and providers that actually care for all of humanity. It is even happening with veterinary science. There is no money to teach and train, although billions every quarter go to United health group.
The practice of veterinary medicine has seen the relentless takeover by the approximately five major private equity firms. People wonder why they are being charged exorbitant fees for minor routine procedures - even vaccinations - formerly the affordable bread and butter income of clinics and the bedrock of preventative care for their pets. Private equity firms zoom in on the smaller clinics especially where the owner/founder is getting ready to retire. And very, very quickly the clinic owner gets some retirement chump change and not only does the clinic price list balloon - treatment is overseen to an oppressive degree by the new owner - a private equity firm. As are staff compensation and benefits. As for veterinary pharmaceuticals? Did you know that there are now PBMs for veterinary pharmaceuticals - and the price fixing for life-saving drugs is beyond unethical.
The truth is private insurance companies get too much blame. To put the healthcare cost debate into perspective consider that in 2023 it was estimated that USA spent $4.5 trillion dollars on healthcare. But the total profits for the entire private health insurance industry which includes United Healthcare only accounted for $45 billion of that humongous pie, or in otherwords 1%.
This data was retrieved by Deepseek AI and was sourced from the Center for Medical Services, the Kaiser Family Foundation, the American Medical Association and SEC Filings.
Wendell Potter is aiming his canon at the wrong target. Insurance companies are simply the tip of the iceberg. 99% of the problem is under the water. It's overpaid doctors. Overpaid nurses. Greedy hospitals. Private equity owned medical practices. Wasteful spending on prescription drugs that either don't provide benefit or actually harm people. It's the diet and lifestyles of Americans. It's the tainted food supply. The toxic PFAS and micro plastics that have tainted the water supply and raised cancer rates. It's the demographic burden of an aging society compromised of unhealthy, junk food eating, sedentary and over medicated boomers. Last but not least the source of the problem is having a third-payer, be it a private company or a governmental program insulate the consumers of healthcare from the direct financial impact of their lifestyle, diet and medical treatment choices.
We don't have a third-payer system for things like flat screen TVs or cars. If we did everyone would buy the most luxurious car and most expensive TV with their hypothetical "Free TV and Car Program" card.
Compare how the current auto insurance model works with the health insurance model. If you get a speeding ticket your auto insurance premium will get jacked up because it's an act of irresponsibility. But if you irresponsibly eat ultra processed sugary food and develop Type-2 Diabetes there is no penalty from the insurance company or government. The costs your irresponsible diet has borne are then redistributed across the entire insurance pool raising costs for everyone.
That's the absurdity of third-payer and single-payer healthcare systems. They completely ignore the fundamental precepts of human nature. There is no incentive for healthcare beneficiaries to act or behave responsibly. No incentive to scrutinize the benefits and risks of medical intervention their doctor may recommend based on his own conflicts of interest (i.e. gifts from Big Pharma and Medical Device sales people).
The current healthcare payment system has produced a disfigured healthcare landscape by suppressing market dynamics and preventing feedback loops. As long as this paradigm remains en force people will continue to become more unhealthy and healthcare spending will gobble up more of GDP.
Your patently ageist rant is offensive. Full stop.
I mentioned age briefly in one sentence and did so in a truthful manner. The Boomer generation's inclination for fast food and aversion to the home cooking traditions of their parents is responsible for significant portion of the current obesity and chronic disease epidemic.
Yes and here’s to fact checking as that might be the step we need to vote for nowadays.