SPOTLIGHT: Should execs make healthcare decisions?


By one school of thought, multimillionaire corporate executives have no business making healthcare decisions for the rank and file employees who report to them. After all, they live in a much different world, with generous policies of their own and sometimes, reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses, while employees with tiny incomes are facing steadily growing health costs. Some critics suggest that individual patients should have far more power in making health purchasing decisions for companies. Actually, though, there is at least one good reason why top execs are still qualified to make decent health purchasing choices, suggests health blogger David Williams. When it comes to actually receiving care, the wealthy are usually treated more or less exactly the same as the poor are. After all, hospital nurses have no idea what your income is or what your title is at work, he notes. So they have just as much incentive as line employees do to improve quality, at least. Blog