Letters to the editor of the Star Tribune continue to come in addressing the pay and stock options granted UnitedHealth CEO Dr. Bill McGuire.
Today, James A. Berquist of LaPorte, Minnesota, writes:
"How sorry is McGuire?
So the CEO of UnitedHealth Group Inc. apologized that his $1.6 billion drew negative public attention ("United's CEO sorry for fuss over pay," May 3). The statement, regrettably, deals with appearances and not substance.
William McGuire told UnitedHealth shareholders that he is sorry that he and the other lap-dog board members got caught in the spotlight. There is not one word of remorse over the underlying core question of what responsibility a public corporation like UnitedHealth has for serving the greater common good of expanded and affordable health care.
Is the CEO and his board incapable of any meaningful self-reflection about the true negative social consequences of their financial actions? Greed for a few has trumped the needs for the many.
UnitedHealth proved unwilling to buck the culture of corporate America that today in the USA coddles the powerful, hides behind rhetoric, and stands content to let the working middle class fall further behind.
Meanwhile, $1 billion of McGuire's inflated $1.6 billion in stock options would be enough to pay a $2,000 annual health care premium for 500,000 uninsured folks."
Posted by schwitz at May 5, 2006 07:45 AM | TrackBack