Earlier this week I blogged about Whole Foods CEO John Mackey’s Wall Street Journal piece in which he lays out his support for free markets and consumer-driven health care. Now comes this ABC News story about the outrage of liberals over the fact that Mr. Mackey — now labeled as Mr. Big Bad Business Man — has the audacity to hope the country stays away from a government takeover of health care.
Curious that liberals are outraged by the views of the CEO of their favorite store, despite this very inconvenient fact: Mr. Mackey provides affordable health insurance to 9 out of 10 employees. Doesn’t that make him a good guy? From the story:
In the op-ed, Mackey outlines Whole Foods’ employee health insurance policy. According to Mackey, Whole Foods pays 100 percent of the premiums for all employees who work 30 hours or more per week — about 89 percent of his workforce.
Additionally, the company gives each employee $1,800 per year in “health-care dollars,” says Mackey, that they can use at their own discretion for health and wellness expenses. This money can be put toward the $2,500 annual deductible that must be covered before Mackey says the company’s “insurance plan kicks in.”
Yep, what a capitalist ogre he is.
Don’t worry Mr. Mackey. I have a feeling you’ll be seeing more SUVs in your parking lots. I know you’ll be seeing mine twice a week, instead of just once.
To find out more about consumer-driven health care and why this approach must be the basis of any reform, attend one of the John Locke Foundation’s health care forums. The schedule and registration information is here.
