Sign up for our newsletter.

Quality journalism. Progressive values. Direct to your inbox.

Follow us:

We know how much you value the nonprofit, independent journalism of Common Dreams. The only thing that keeps us going is support from readers like you. As some have been forced to cut back on giving, your contribution becomes even more important. So please, join the small group of generous readers who donate, keeping Common Dreams free for millions of people each year. Help fill the gap created by those who have been forced to cancel their monthly recurring donations. Without your help, we won’t survive.

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.

Dear Common Dreams Readers:
Corporations and billionaires have their own media. Shouldn't we? When you “follow the money” that funds our independent journalism, it all leads back to this: people like you. Our supporters are what allows us to produce journalism in the public interest that is beholden only to people, our planet, and the common good. Please support our Mid-Year Campaign so that we always have a newsroom for the people that is funded by the people. Thank you for your support. --Jon Queally, managing editor

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.

Join the small group of generous readers who donate, keeping Common Dreams free for millions of people each year. Without your help, we won’t survive.

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.

Activists march outside of Eli Lilly's offices at Alexandria Center for Life Science in New York City on September 5, 2019 (Photo: Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty Images)

'Outrageous,' Says Bernie Sanders as Filings Show Top Healthcare CEOs Raked in Combined $300 Million in 2019

Sanders, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate, vowed to "end the greed of the pharmaceutical industry and pass Medicare for All."

Jake Johnson

Annual financial filings compiled by Axios Friday show that 10 of the nation's top healthcare CEOs took home more than $300 million in combined pay in 2019, compensation that Sen. Bernie Sanders denounced as "outrageous" and indicative of the industry's greed.

"While Americans continue to pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs, the top 10 healthcare CEOs made over $300 million in compensation last year," tweeted Sanders, a 2020 Democratic presidential candidate.

"We will end the greed of the pharmaceutical industry and pass Medicare for All," added Sanders, who has been targeted by industry-backed ad campaigns against universal healthcare.

Axios reported that the executives' eye-popping compensation in 2019 "mostly came from large stock gains."

Ari Bousbib, CEO of pharmaceutical data firm IQVIA, raked in more than $104 million in 2019, according to Axios' healthcare executive compensation tracker. Gary Guthart, CEO of clinical technology firm Intuitive Surgical CEO, brought home nearly $50.5 million. David Ricks, chief executive at pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly, made over $30 million.

"The healthcare system is a firehose of spending," Axios noted, "and a good chunk of that money always makes its way to the top."

Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Comments

"I'm sure this will be all over the corporate media, right?"
That’s what one longtime Common Dreams reader said yesterday after the newsroom reported on new research showing how corporate price gouging surged to a nearly 70-year high in 2021. While major broadcasters, newspapers, and other outlets continue to carry water for their corporate advertisers when they report on issues like inflation, economic inequality, and the climate emergency, our independence empowers us to provide you stories and perspectives that powerful interests don’t want you to have. But this independence is only possible because of support from readers like you. You make the difference. If our support dries up, so will we. Our crucial Mid-Year Campaign is now underway and we are in emergency mode to make sure we raise the necessary funds so that every day we can bring you the stories that corporate, for-profit outlets ignore and neglect. Please, if you can, support Common Dreams today.

 

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.

Latest News

See all
G7 protesters clash with police in Munich, Germany

Global Windfall Profit Tax of 90% Needed to Address 'Catastrophic' Food, Climate Crises: Oxfam

Taxing the excess profits of large corporations within the G7 alone could raise an estimated $430 billion to fight world hunger, deliver vaccines to the entire world, and make a giant dent in the fight to drive down fossil fuel pollution and jumpstart the necessary renewable energy transition.

Jon Queally ·

Romanian naval forces take part in a military drill

NATO to Boost Ranks of High-Readiness Forces by 650% to Over 300,000

Anti-war campaigners responded that "this is not the path to peace and will not make the world safer."

Jake Johnson ·

A fence blocks the entrance to the U.S. Supreme Court

Ilhan Omar Says Plan to Fix Supreme Court Must Include Impeachment Probes

"We need an impeachment investigation into Clarence Thomas' role in the January 6th coup, as well as into Gorsuch, Alito, Barrett, and Kavanaugh's testimony on Roe during their confirmation hearings," said the Minnesota Democrat.

Jake Johnson ·

"Lying under oath is an impeachable offense," Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) told "Meet the Press" on June 26, 2022.

Right-Wing Justices Should Be Impeached for Lying Under Oath, Says Ocasio-Cortez

"We have a responsibility to protect our democracy," said the New York Democrat. "That includes holding those in power who violate the law accountable."

Kenny Stancil ·

President Joe Biden

'Infuriating': Biden Rebuked for Continued Opposition to Supreme Court Expansion

"What does Biden 'agree' with doing?" Mehdi Hasan asked. "What does the leader of this country want to do to stop the increasingly fascistic assault on our democratic institutions and basic rights?"

Kenny Stancil ·

Common Dreams Logo

To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.