Letter: Health Care Costs – Anchorage Daily News

Updated: 2 minutes ago Published: 2 minutes ago

The next time you wonder why healthcare is so expensive, here are the salaries of some healthcare executives: Aetna CEO Salary in 2017: $18.7 million; United CEO Salary in 2018: $21.5 million; Cigna CEO Salary in 2018: $18.9 million.

Anthem made $104 billion in 2019. Cigna made $154 billion, United made $242 billion, Aetna made $69.6 billion.

Total annual health care spending is more than $3.6 trillion per year. Administrative costs make up 73% of that total. Doctors’ salaries: 8%. When your doctor can’t get you the tests/imaging/procedures/surgery/medication you need, remind yourself that middle management, CEOs, lobbyists, etc. are not sworn to put your health before profits. Your doctor did that. The doctor who misses sleep, skips vacations, misses family events, answers calls on weekends, misses recitals and hockey games.

–Dr. Mathew Cannava

Soldotna

Do you have something in mind? Send to [email protected] or click here submit via any web browser. Letters of less than 200 words have the best chance of being published. Writers should disclose any personal or professional connections to the subjects of their letters. Letters are edited for accuracy, clarity and length.