In a press release posted this morning on the Berkshire Hathaway website, the multinational conglomerate holding company announced its intentions to partner with tech behemoth Amazon and financial giant JPMorgan Chase & Co. to form an independent company focused on addressing healthcare for their U.S. employees, with the aim of improving employee satisfaction and reducing costs.
“The ballooning costs of healthcare act as a hungry tapeworm on the American economy,” said Warren Buffett, Berkshire Hathaway Chairman and CEO, in the statement.
“Our group does not come to this problem with answers," he added. ”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.”
Buffett said the new company will be free from profit-making incentives and constraints, and will focus initially on “technology solutions that will provide U.S. employees and their families with simplified, high-quality and transparent healthcare at a reasonable cost.”
More from the press release:
“The healthcare system is complex, and we enter into this challenge open-eyed about the degree of difficulty,” said Jeff Bezos, Amazon founder and CEO. “Hard as it might be, reducing healthcare’s burden on the economy while improving outcomes for employees and their families would be worth the effort. Success is going to require talented experts, a beginner’s mind, and a long-term orientation.”
“Our people want transparency, knowledge and control when it comes to managing their healthcare,” said Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase & Co.. “The three of our companies have extraordinary resources, and our goal is to create solutions that benefit our U.S. employees, their families and, potentially, all Americans,” he added.
The effort announced today is in its early planning stages, with the initial formation of the company jointly spearheaded by Todd Combs, an investment officer of Berkshire Hathaway; Marvelle Sullivan Berchtold, a Managing Director of JPMorgan Chase & Co.; and Beth Galetti, a Senior Vice President at Amazon. The longerterm management team, headquarters location, and key operational details will be communicated in due course.
Related Stories
Urban Planning | Apr 12, 2023
Watch: Trends in urban design for 2023, with James Corner Field Operations
Isabel Castilla, a Principal Designer with the landscape architecture firm James Corner Field Operations, discusses recent changes in clients' priorities about urban design, with a focus on her firm's recent projects.
Market Data | Apr 11, 2023
Construction crane count reaches all-time high in Q1 2023
Toronto, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Denver top the list of U.S/Canadian cities with the greatest number of fixed cranes on construction sites, according to Rider Levett Bucknall's RLB Crane Index for North America for Q1 2023.
Contractors | Apr 10, 2023
What makes prefabrication work? Factors every construction project should consider
There are many factors requiring careful consideration when determining whether a project is a good fit for prefabrication. JE Dunn’s Brian Burkett breaks down the most important considerations.
Architects | Apr 6, 2023
New tool from Perkins&Will will make public health data more accessible to designers and architects
Called PRECEDE, the dashboard is an open-source tool developed by Perkins&Will that draws on federal data to identify and assess community health priorities within the U.S. by location. The firm was recently awarded a $30,000 ASID Foundation Grant to enhance the tool.
Sustainability | Apr 4, 2023
NIBS report: Decarbonizing the U.S. building sector will require massive, coordinated effort
Decarbonizing the building sector will require a massive, strategic, and coordinated effort by the public and private sectors, according to a report by the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS).
Healthcare Facilities | Mar 26, 2023
UC Davis Health opens new eye institute building for eye care, research, and training
UC Davis Health recently marked the opening of the new Ernest E. Tschannen Eye Institute Building and the expansion of the Ambulatory Care Center (ACC). Located in Sacramento, Calif., the Eye Center provides eye care, vision research, and training for specialists and investigators. With the new building, the Eye Center’s vision scientists can increase capacity for clinical trials by 50%.
Healthcare Facilities | Mar 25, 2023
California medical center breaks ground on behavioral health facility for both adults and children
In San Jose, Calif., Santa Clara Valley Medical Center (SCVMC) has broken ground on a new behavioral health facility: the Child, Adolescent, and Adult Behavioral Health Services Center. Designed by HGA, the center will bring together under one roof Santa Clara County’s behavioral health offerings, including Emergency Psychiatric Services and Urgent Care.
Healthcare Facilities | Mar 22, 2023
New Jersey’s new surgical tower features state’s first intraoperative MRI system
Hackensack (N.J.) University Medical Center recently opened its 530,000-sf Helena Theurer Pavilion, a nine-story surgical and intensive care tower designed by RSC Architects and Page. The county’s first hospital, Hackensack University Medical Center, a 781-bed nonprofit teaching and research hospital, was founded in 1888.
Project + Process Innovation | Mar 22, 2023
Onsite prefabrication for healthcare construction: It's more than a process, it's a partnership
Prefabrication can help project teams navigate an uncertain market. GBBN's Mickey LeRoy, AIA, ACHA, LEED AP, explains the difference between onsite and offsite prefabrication methods for healthcare construction projects.
Modular Building | Mar 20, 2023
3 ways prefabrication doubles as a sustainability strategy
Corie Baker, AIA, shares three modular Gresham Smith projects that found sustainability benefits from the use of prefabrication.
