Dr. Jain says execs ‘are taking public dollars for entertainment when we should instead be modeling fiscal responsibility and wise stewardship of public funds’

LONG BEACH, CA, UNITED STATES, September 27, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ — In his latest Forbes column, SCAN CEO Dr. Sachin Jain calls out healthcare industry executives whose companies are funded with public money for exchanging corporate gifts with vendors and others business partners.

“Healthcare companies that are funded with public dollars should be an exception to business as usual—and a highly visible one at that,” Jain wrote in the column, which appeared on his Forbes page.

Jain calls the practice of healthcare executives exchanging gifts “an open secret.” He said healthcare executives regularly buy each other expensive dinners and give and receive pricey tickets to sporting events such as the US Open and the World Series. Earlier this year Jain himself was offered Super Bowl tickets and other extras valued at more than $8,000, which he declined.

“In a system that, for all our striving to provide blanket coverage to the neediest, still leaves many millions of people unserved or under-served, and where costs have been rising unmitigated, this practice is simply wrong,” says Jain, president and CEO of SCAN Group and SCAN Health Plan.

He calls on his fellow healthcare executives to follow guidelines similar to those set by SCAN Health Plan, a Medicare Advantage plan that receives 99% of its revenues from the federal Medicare program. The SCAN Code of Ethics bars employees from accepting gifts or courtesies worth $150 per event or $300 annually from current or prospective business partners.

“Public trust in healthcare continues to decline, in part due to the idea that healthcare is a profit-seeking enterprise. It’s time for healthcare leaders to step up and commit to not using any public funds on excessive gifts,” says Jain.

Dr. Jain’s column can be found here.

About SCAN Group
SCAN Group is a mission-driven organization that is tackling some of the biggest issues in health care for older adults. SCAN Group operates SCAN Health Plan, one of the nation’s foremost not-for-profit Medicare Advantage plans, serving more than 270,000 members in California, Healthcare in Action, Welcome Health, myPlace Health and Homebase Medical. Independence at Home, a SCAN community service, provides vitally needed services and support to seniors and their caregivers regardless of plan membership. SCAN Group also invests in new companies to support healthier aging, offers education programs, community funding, volunteer opportunities, and other community services in support of its mission—keeping seniors healthy and independent. To learn more, visit www.thescangroup.org or follow us on LinkedIn.

Seffrah Orlando
SCAN Group
+1 562-508-6781
sorlando@scanhealthplan.com