Aetna (CVS Health) — Ethics Grade D+

Aetna (CVS Health) receives an overall ethics grade of D+ (33/100) on CancelCo's corporate accountability database. Sector: Health Insurance. Market cap: Large Cap. Parent company: CVS Health.

Category scores

• labor: 40
• privacy: 15
• consumer: 8
• environment: 55
• humanRights: 30

Documented incidents (3)

• HIV status disclosure breach (high, 2023) — Settled for $17M after mailing letters with HIV medication information visible through envelope windows, outing 12,000 patients.
• Emergency room claim denials (high, 2022) — Implemented policy to retroactively deny ER claims if the diagnosis turned out to be non-emergent, even if symptoms warranted emergency care.
• Medical director never reviewed records (high, 2018) — Former medical director testified he never reviewed patients' medical records before denying coverage for treatments.

Documented good deeds

• Aetna Foundation health programs — Invested $160M in community health programs focused on racial equity and social determinants of health.

Ethical alternatives

• Kaiser Permanente — Non-profit integrated model aligned incentives to keep patients healthy rather than deny claims.