Tuesday, Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and bank, JP Morgan chase announced they are forming an independent healthcare company for their employees in the U.S. It’s no secret healthcare in the United States is expensive, these corporate businesses coming together to focus on creating low-cost and high-quality healthcare to employees and their families.

From left: Warren E. Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway, Jeff Bezos of Amazon and Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase. Credit Associated Press

The initiative, while still in its early stages, is carried out by chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway, Warren Buffet, CEO of JP Morgan, Jamie Dimon and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos.

In a joint statement they expressed that “The ballooning costs of health care act as a hungry tapeworm on American economy," Buffett said in the press release. "Our group does not come to this problem with answers. But we also do not accept it as inevitable.  Rather, we share the belief that putting our collective resources behind the country’s best talent can, in time, check the rise in health costs while concurrently enhancing patient satisfaction and outcomes.”

The company aims to focus “technology solutions that will provide U.S. employees and their families with simplified, high-quality and transparent health care at a reasonable cost.”

Health care stocks plummet after Amazon, JPMorgan Chase & Berkshire Hathaway announce landmark employee health plan #VelshiRuhle pic.twitter.com/mDTgoJuwAa

— MSNBC (@MSNBC) January 30, 2018

Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont also expressed his support for this type of healthcare (single-player) in his 2016 presidential campaign “Warren Buffett himself has indicated his belief that he thinks single-payer health care might make sense for this country,” Sanders told The World-Herald. “And I think it is interesting that three major corporate entities are suggesting — correctly — that the current dysfunctional health care system is way too expensive, way too inefficient and doesn’t work for consumers.”

Other corporations like Walmart and Intel have ventured into field of providing healthcare for their employees since 2017. They also acquired Whole Foods, expanding the industry they are into. Although this may not be the answer to everything and we might not know how effective the initiative might be, health insurance is a big problem, and a new health company definitely does more good.

The company added that the initiative will “free of profit–making incentives and constraints”. They were not specific about whether the company itself will be a non-profit organization or not.

By: Chizzy Obilonu

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