Is Cigna Health Insurance Company only motivated by greed?

Answer 1

I've got news for you. ALL insurance companies are more motivated by the bottom line than actually providing the quality of care we all deserve, but don't get.
I saw that article about that girl awaiting a liver transplant who died fighting the insurance company. For the record, she was NOT brain dead; she was in a medically-induced coma. HUGE difference.
Michael Moore is right.
This is the reason I left my profession in healthcare.

Answer 2

1. She was in a medically induced coma, & couldn't be revived.
2. She had already rejected one transplant.

What 'business' isn't trying to make a profit?

Why didn't the doctors or hospitals offer to do the surgery for free? Are they only motivated by greed? Why didn't the parents have the surgery anyway, and worry about the insurance later? Because they're greedy? Of course not.

If there were no insurance companies, we'd all pay cash for medical services. If the insurance companies were broke, we'd pay even more.

So, in answer to your questions... no & yes.

Answer 3

After working for two different health insurance companies, I would say that most of them are motivated by greed. This doesn't mean that all employees who work there are (myself and several others busted our a**es to get things approved, much to the dismay of the companies we worked for). In the end, to these companies, it really is all about profit. It is a sad, sad, thing. So many people suffer needlessly.

So if you ever call your insurance company, and you get someone on the line who is giving you advice, take it. Also listen to the subtle hints that are sometimes dropped. These employees can't come right out and say "do this,this,and this and your claim will be approved". Don't just assume that when they tell you to submit an appeal it will do no good. In fact, I would say 75% of appeals are eventually approved with the right documentation provided.

Answer 4

I think that a lot of people are missing an important point.

Yes, a lot of us are frustrated with our health insurance companies. I'm not a huge fan of Cigna. However, public companies have a fiduciary responsibility to their shareholders, NOT their customers. In other words, they are legally obligated to run the company for the benefit of their stockholders. They will take good care of their customers to the extent that it benefits their profits and their stockholders. You might not like that, but it's how things work.

Americans have to decide what we really want. We get mad at insurance companies for doing what they're legally required to do. However, large numbers of Americans are firecely against government run healthcare. We have two choices. We can remove the profit motive and have government run health care. Or, we can keep government out of health care and leave it in the hands of profit-making companies. We can't have it both ways, folks.

Answer 5

They can't be. If they were, they'd be in the business of politics, instead of Health INsurance, where the profit margin is about 1%.

I don't know where people get these ideas that insurance companies make these massive profits. They pay out about $.99 for every $1 they take in. Oil companies make about 30%, and Coca Cola even more (and a coke costs more per gallon than gas, too).

(Although I have Cigna, personally, and spend hours each month trying to straighten out stuff with them. What a MESS. Worst carrier I've ever dealt with, for incorrect denials of claims, messing up paperwork, and passing the blame on someone else, not to mention their HORRIBLE automated system when you first dial in.)

Answer 6

All health insurance carriers are COMPANIES. Companies are in business to make money. They aren't necessarily interested in covering your health expenses.

Just because one is a business, and you need to make money, does not make one greedy. It makes you a business.

The problem is, insurance is a business that is in health care, which is extremely personal, so when decisions are made by insurance companies what to cover, and not to cover, it feels like a personal attack. It's therefore easy to attach a label, which would normally be attached to a person, like "greedy".

But - if one thinks an entity is "greedy", then the best way to handle it is to feed them as little money as possible.

We all need to make smarter decisions about how we use insurance, and I'm a firm believer that the less an insurance company has of my money, the better. Please see my site on ways to accomplish this - http://www.health-insurance-low-cost.net.

Answer 7

All insurance companies are out to make money. If there wasn't so much government involvement and regulation in healthcare it wouldn't cost so much and we wouldn't need insurance as it is.

As to the girl you are referring to: she was already brain dead when Cigna decided not to pay for her liver transplant. They made the right decision and now someone who can live a full life will get a needed liver transplant.

Answer 8

Every publically owned , for profit corperation is motivated by greed.
What part of 'trying to make money for the shareholders' did you not understand?

Answer 9

All insurance companies are

Answer 10

I think the question should be: which health insurance isn't. They all suck equally