The most shocking example of medical failure and America's healthcare system prioritizing profits over patient care has been revealed.
The Loan Institute, an independent healthcare think tank, ranked the most egregious examples of profiteering and dysfunction within the healthcare industry as part of its annual report.
Known as the Shkreli Award, is named after notorious “pharmaceutical man” Martin Shkreli, who acquired the manufacturing rights to the anti-parasitic drug Daraprim and increased its price by more than 5,000 percent.
The 2024 list includes a Texas medical center that allegedly dissected and sold body parts of deceased people without informing their families.
A former nonprofit cancer center in New Mexico was also named on the list for allegedly denying treatment to patients or requiring them to pay in advance.
One of the most shocking entries focuses on a patient in Montana who underwent 10 years of grueling chemotherapy despite not having cancer.
“It should come as no surprise to anyone that the medical sector is hogging the headlines for all the wrong reasons,” said Vikas Saini, director of the Loan Institute.
“The Shkreli Award is a stark reminder of what happens when profiteering outweighs the public interest.
Steward Health Care System CEO Ralph de la Torre made $250 million and flaunted an ultra-wealthy lifestyle as his hospital chain collapsed.
“By shining a light on these unethical practices, we are calling on industry leaders and policymakers to do better.”
The 10 worst offenders were chosen by a panel of health policy experts, clinicians, journalists, and advocates.
In first place is Steward Health Care System CEO Ralph de la Torre, who made $250 million and lived the lifestyle of the ultra-wealthy as his hospital chain collapsed. flaunted.
The former heart surgeon, who lives in an 11,108-square-foot mansion in Dallas, now faces a possible prison sentence after being convicted.
Next on the list was health insurance conglomerate UnitedHealth Group.
“What started as a small health insurance company in Minnesota has now become the fourth largest company in the nation, managing nearly 90,000 physicians and gaining far-reaching influence in the health care industry,” the experts said. It has been made clear that
One study found that UnitedHealth “leverages its vast physician network to maximize profits, often at the expense of patients and clinicians.”
As a result, the company, which denies any wrongdoing, faces a federal lawsuit over its conduct and an ongoing antitrust investigation.
Pharmaceutical company Amgen came in third on the list of worst offenders.
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The review committee explained that the company's anti-cancer drug Lumaclas received accelerated FDA approval in 2021 at a daily dose of 960 mg.
However, subsequent trials showed that a dose of 960 mg extended lifespan by an average of one month, while a lower dose of 240 mg had similar effects, with reduced toxicity and side effects such as diarrhea and vomiting. Ta.
However, the Rohn Institute states that despite these findings, “Amgen continues to market higher doses and is moving forward with the process for final FDA approval at that level.” .
“There is no indication that Amgen, which faces annual losses of $180,000 per patient on lower doses, is interested in changing course,” the paper concluded.
A company spokesperson noted that the FDA has accepted 960 mg as the recommended dose.
The fourth case noted by the Rohn Institute involves Dr. Thomas C. Weiner, an oncologist at St. Peter's Hospital in Helena, Montana.
He is accused of subjecting patient Anthony Olson to nine years of chemotherapy for a blood cancer he never had.
As a result of the treatment, Olson suffered a number of serious side effects, including tooth loss.
It wasn't until 2020 that Olson found out he didn't have cancer, when he sought a second opinion from a specialist at the Mayo Clinic.
In other cases, the report provides evidence that Dr. Weiner “administered disturbingly high doses of barbiturates to accelerate the death of critically ill patients who may not have actually been close to death.” .
The report also alleges that he “changed end-of-life plans without consulting patients, prescribed high doses of opioids to patients who did not need them, and often failed to document his work.” There is.
Dr. Weiner, who has consistently denied any wrongdoing, was removed from his position in 2020, and the U.S. Attorney's Office filed a civil complaint against him on behalf of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Defense, and Department of Veterans Affairs. Administration and Drug Enforcement Administration.
Memorial Medical Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico, is under fire from experts after it faces allegations that it denies cancer treatment to patients and requires them to pay upfront, even if they have insurance. It was done.
Panelists emphasized that the previously nonprofit hospital is now operated as a for-profit facility by LifePoint Health and owned by private equity firm Apollo Global Management.
Memorial Medical Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico, is currently facing allegations of denying cancer treatment to patients and has been criticized by experts.
They point out that the hospital's funding policy once included cancer treatment, but was changed to exclude it in 2023.
Although the hospital denies turning away patients, “multiple reports, patient testimony, and internal documents suggest otherwise.”
In sixth place was the Medicare catheter fraud charge.
Seven medical supply companies made suspicious claims involving approximately 450,000 beneficiaries.
One of the suppliers, named “Pretty in Pink Boutique,” had no medical-related business at that address and the phone number went to an auto body repair shop.
Linda Hennis, a former nurse who was billed in her name for 2,000 urinary catheters she never needed or received, said of the scam: “I hate the idea that someone would defraud Medicare.” Many of us depend on it. That's clearly ethically wrong. ”
Another disturbing story highlighted by the Loan Institute team involved a family who was charged $100,000 for an emergency flight for their child.
Sarah England's young son Amari experienced severe breathing difficulties two months after open heart surgery.
Doctors at Nativida Medical Center in Salinas, California, determined that he needed immediate specialized treatment, and an air ambulance transport to San Francisco Medical Center was arranged.
The boy eventually recovered and returned home, but England learned that his insurance company, Cigna, had refused to cover the 86-mile flight, leaving the family with a $97,599 bill.
Patricia Kelmer, senior director of the Public Interest Research Group, said the case was “a heartbreaking example of a hospital taking advantage of a distraught mother on the advice of her doctors.”
Another troubling case that outraged panelists involved Zynex Medical, which specializes in nerve stimulators used for pain management.
The Colorado-based company has faced intense scrutiny over its billing practices.
Panelists warned about tongue tie cuts in babies, where a laser burns away the excess skin under the tongue and the web that connects the lips and cheeks.
One report said the company sent batteries and electrode pads to patients to keep the devices running, “often in larger quantities than needed and at high cost.” .
Almost 70% of Zynex's $184 million in 2023 revenue is reported to come from batteries and electrode pads, and former Zynex employees have said that while working there, they were able to “shape people's lives.” He said that he felt that he was playing a leading role in worsening the situation.
In ninth place, panelists highlighted the practice of baby tongue-tie cuts. This involves using a laser to burn off the excess skin under the tongue and the webbing that connects the lips and cheeks.
The drug is supposed to be used in infants with a true defect that prevents proper breastfeeding, but even though about 60% of infants recover without surgery, medical experts have not recommended its prescription. are becoming increasingly tolerant.
The rate of surgeries jumped 800 percent between 1997 and 2012, from about 1,280 to more than 12,000, and doctors and lactation consultants earn millions of dollars a year.
In some cases, this procedure leaves infants with severe and persistent pain, as well as difficulty eating, malnutrition, and the need to be connected to a feeding tube.
Another unpleasant aspect of the procedure, the Loan Institute notes, is that “it is rarely covered by insurance, so most parents perform the procedure out of pocket, with one doctor charging $900 per procedure.” He claims to have done as many as 100 cases a week.”
Victor Carl Haney, 58, a dedicated Army veteran, watched his body parts sold without his consent after his death following a scandal involving the University of North Texas Health Science Center. I made it
Rounding out the list of stories of profiteering and dysfunction in the medical field is a medical school in Texas that allegedly failed to notify next of kin of a deceased patient before selling their body parts.
An NBC News investigation revealed that the University of North Texas Health Science Center in Fort Worth dissected and distributed unclaimed bodies without proper consent from the deceased and their families.
The center's operations then supplied body parts to medical students as well as major commercial ventures such as Medtronic and Johnson & Johnson.
Victor Carl Honey, 58, a dedicated Army veteran who struggled with mental illness, died of heart failure in September 2022.
Honey was among 2,350 people whose remains were sent to the University of North Texas Health Science Center's body donation program.
But a month after his death, the Dallas County coroner said calls to relatives could not be reached, even though Honey's ex-wife and two adult children lived in the state. Honey's body was deemed “unclaimed.”
Honey's body was stored in a freezer, then dismembered and shipped piecemeal across the country.
His torso was sold to a medical education company for $900. The right leg was shipped to a Swedish medical device manufacturer for $341. Bones from his skull were sent to the US Army for $210 for military training purposes.
Following NBC's investigation, the university discontinued the body donation program and fired the staff member responsible.
We have also initiated both internal and external reviews to address ethics violations. Gary Schwitzer, a medical journalist for 50 years, called the incident “an incredibly macabre and irreverent story, the final humiliation of a poor man's body.”
