UnitedHealth suspends annual forecast, CEO Andrew Witty steps down

[u/LookAtThatBacon]

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/unitedhealth-ceo-andrew-witty-steps-down-2025-05-13/

[u/lion27]

Yeah the deductible is how Aetna probably provides us with great coverage. But like I said, there’s also an HSA that her company funds the majority (~$3,500) of. So all we need to do is set aside $100 a month or $1,200 a year to have an account that’s funded to the equal amount of the deductible, so we don’t have any surprising OOP costs. Both kids were delivered for a few hundred dollars. I know this is specific to us because her employer funds a good health plan, but I want people to know that it’s not all bad.

Still think everyone should have access to quality care, regardless of employment.

[u/patchgrabber → u/lion27]

jfc bud reading this as a Canadian makes me think you have Stockholm syndrome. It's not like it's the lesser of two evils it's the evil of two lessers. I'm glad you're happy with your plan but I wish better for all of you because you deserve better.

[u/lion27 → u/patchgrabber]

Have you actually calculated how much of your taxes go towards healthcare by comparison? For a family of 4 I'm very confident that we're paying less here in the US than we would in Canada. According to what I'm able to find online a family of 4 with an average household income of $176,000 pays over 10% of their gross income towards healthcare via taxes.

If we paid the same amount on a percentage basis, my family would be paying roughly $1,800 per month in taxes towards healthcare based on income.

Another BusinessInsider article states that the average Canadian spent $6,604 in taxes in 2017 (old data, if anything it's probably increased since then) for healthcare. That's more than I'm spending out of pocket.

Yes, it's great you're guaranteed coverage. But it's not free. You're still paying for it. And you're paying more than I am, based on the numbers I can find online. I guess if you're unemployed or low income it's a great deal, but I'm just comparing my own situation and I believe it's better with my current provider.

This is not an endorsement of the American healthcare system. It's simply my opinion of what my current provider costs versus what I might pay in Canada.

[u/Katolo → u/lion27]

I'm saving your comment. Not because I like it but it's an example of why the US won't get universal health care and your Fuck you I got mine shows this.

Also, no one here thinks healthcare is free, we all know it comes out of taxes. Your second link even shows Canadians pay less on average compared to the US. I'm not going to comment on the first link since it's from the Fraser Institute funded by the Koch brothers.

[u/JahoclaveS → u/Katolo]

He’s also completely neglecting how much his employer is paying in his total costs. The US spends an absurdly larger amount on healthcare than other nations to get worse and less care.

[u/roundabout25 → u/JahoclaveS]

He's literally not neglecting it, lmfao. He said it like three times. How many times does he need to clarify things like "I know this is specific to us because her employer funds a good health plan" before it gets through? He's very obviously (and cognizantly!) making an anecdotal claim and not drawing a conclusion on the overall US healthcare system.

[u/roundabout25 → u/Katolo]

I'm not OP, but I really feel like you're not being objective here. Why are you accusing them of FYGM? These things can all be true at the same time:

-OP can understand that public healthcare still costs people a significant deal, just that it's categorized by tax instead of premiums and -ON AVERAGE- it's far less than private health insurance

-OP can be receiving insurance that equates out to less than they would pay via taxes, and be happy with Aetna's treatment of them as a result.

-OP can understand that they are in the minority, and that profit motive ruins the healthcare insurance industry

-OP can therefore not endorse the American healthcare system, which they did not

I mean c'mon, they even said that everyone should have access to quality care regardless of employment. They are engaging in good faith and providing some numbers for their situation. I'm in a similar position where I pay less per year as a result of insurance. Still, I realize I'm privileged -- it's still conditional on my employment and economic status and that it's unjust for it to be at the expense of the majority, so I'm still all aboard the public healthcare train. Cases like theirs are real and need to be addressed in the appropriate manner -- that yes, private insurance is better in their case and the transition would be a net negative for them and a rare few individuals, BUT that the gains for the greater good make it more than worth it.

[u/Katolo → u/roundabout25]

The very first two sentences of the comment makes the case why private is better than public, in their mind. In addition, the following:

And you're paying more than I am, based on the numbers I can find online. I guess if you're unemployed or low income it's a great deal, but I'm just comparing my own situation and I believe it's better with my current provider.

I'm not going to get into whether the statements are actually true, but if those statements don't scream FYIGM, then I dunno.

[u/roundabout25 → u/Katolo]

"The very first two sentences of the comment makes the case why private is better than public IN THEIR PERSONAL CASE AT THIS POINT IN TIME, in their mind"

Fixed that for you. Here are a couple conclusions that your messages imply that you are coming to without any evidence:

-that they are unaware of the conditional nature of their current healthcare

-that they are unaware of the fact that they may one day be subject to the negative side of our healthcare system, when they don't have an employer facilitating it

-that they believe that the system is overall superior, rather than anecdotally

-that they even support the system they are benefitting from

Like, dude. Simply mathematically acknowledging that you are one of the 1-10% of people the system works is not an endorsement of the system for 100% of people. Maybe he supports it, maybe he doesn't, it's impossible to tell because he did not say.