Smith Faculty Opinion Article
The 30 Seconds Outlook
February 1, 2012
“You [healthcare industry] should feel pretty good about the lives you
save. And you should be able to make a profit.”
- Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase, January 13, 2012.
Jamie Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase, had a most interesting interview with
Maria Bartiromo at the JPMorgan Healthcare Conference. With his usual bluntness,
he commented on several issues:
1. Make sure you are represented in Washington.
“There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s a democracy.”
2. Regulation is fine if it’s done properly.
“Usually, it’s not.”
3. Occupy Wall Street: “Stop vilifying big
business. Things are pretty good, but we can’t get out of this malaise [if
business continues to be attacked].”
4. Immigration: “America has the best military and
universities in the world. It’s pathetic and immoral that we teach kids from all
over the world and then make them go home.”
5. Subsidies: “Government should stop subsidizing
business. Just get out of the way.”
6. Obamacare: “Would I like to see universal
healthcare? Yes. But all we did was pile more stuff on top of a crappy system.”
7. Payroll Tax: “The payroll policy is in effect
fro two months. What kind of a joke is that?”
8. Short-term focus on Wall Street (audience):
“Some times the market will overvalue your company. Some times it will overvalue
it. Get over it. Run your company and build your business for the long term.”
Thanks to Marc Lichtenfeld at the conference.
John A. Haslem
