HCA Healthcare, Inc. — Ethics Grade C

HCA Healthcare, Inc. receives an overall ethics grade of C (42/100) on CancelCo's corporate accountability database. Sector: Healthcare. Market cap: Large Cap.

Category scores

• labor: 30
• privacy: 65
• consumer: 25
• environment: 70
• humanRights: 55

Documented incidents (3)

• Unnecessary Cardiac Procedures (high, 2022) — Federal regulators and media investigations uncovered evidence that HCA hospitals performed unnecessary heart surgeries and interventions to maximize Medicare and insurance reimbursements.
• Unsafe Staffing Ratios (high, 2023) — Nurses and labor unions filed complaints alleging that the company intentionally understaffs facilities to improve profit margins, leading to patient safety risks and high burnout rates.
• Emergency Room Upcoding (medium, 2021) — Investigations alleged that HCA systematically 'upcoded' emergency room visits, charging for more intensive care than was actually provided to increase revenue from private insurers.

Documented good deeds

• Community Giving Program — Provided approximately $3.5 billion in uncompensated care and community benefits to uninsured and underinsured patients.

Ethical alternatives

• Mayo Clinic — Non-profit model prioritized over shareholder returns, leading to better patient safety outcomes.