I’m slow finding out about this, but ten days ago Wakemed and UnitedHealthcare apparently kissed and made up after UHC’s dropping the hospital from its coverage left many patients hanging.
Once I got laid off in May this became a non-issue for me, ironically. Still, its good to see that UHC recognizes the valuable care Wakemed provides. After the movie Sicko came out there is no doubt in my mind who the good guys were in this matter.
I’m not sure there is a “good guy” in this matter, Mark. WakeMed is also a for-profit organization, just as UHC is. WakeMed is no more providing healthcare for your ultimate good than UHC is — only to the extend to which patients represent a positive net margin for the company. They would “leave patients hanging” just as fast as UHC would, if those patients represented a net loss to their bottom-line.
Mr. Moore’s main thesis in Sicko — whether you agree with it or not (I don’t) — is that a for-profit healthcare system is not necessarily an optimal system as free-market supporters would suggest. He doesn’t singularly fault insurance companies, but rather the resulting behavior that a for-profit system causes in insurance companies.
You’re wrong about Wakemed. Wakemed is a private, not-for-profit corporation, chartered to spend at least 4.8% of its revenues on indigent care (though, granted, it apparently has had trouble meeting that benchmark).
Also, Wakemed isn’t in the habit of giving its CEO a $1,200,000,000+ retirement package, unlike, um, UHC.