The Corporatization of American Health Care: The Rise of Corporate Hegemony and the Loss of Professional Autonomy

Why American Healthcare Feels Like a Business

Few debates in contemporary American life are as urgent—or as quietly shaped by money—as the direction of the nation’s healthcare system. In The Corporatization of American Health Care, J. Warren Salmon and Stephen L. Thompson argue that what is often called a healthcare “non-system” is actually a coherent system organized around private profit and return on investment.

Understanding the Corporate Turn

The book traces how, since the 1970s, corporate entities have reorganized the production of health services, introducing new techniques, products, and operating margins while reshaping relationships between patients and health professionals. Salmon and Thompson connect this shift to larger developments in American political economy, showing how growth in one sector often accompanies neglect in another.

Professional Autonomy Under Pressure

A central focus is the gradual loss of professional autonomy among physicians and nurses. The authors examine the growing administrative control over clinical decision-making, from treatment protocols to utilization management, and the resulting burnout that has become widespread in medical practice.

Public Health vs. Profit

Drawing on historical analysis and contemporary reporting, the authors contrast market-driven medicine with a broader vision of population health. They argue that the current system prioritizes profitable interventions over prevention, and they use the COVID-19 pandemic to illustrate how these patterns harm vulnerable communities and expose structural weaknesses.

What Readers Gain

• A critical framework for interpreting healthcare structure and policy
• Historical context spanning 150 years of American medicine
• Insight into the relationship between corporate power and professional practice
• Discussion of possible reform directions grounded in public health principles

A Timely Resource for Health Professionals and Policy-Minded Readers

This Springer publication is intended for health professionals, academics, policy makers, and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of why American healthcare functions as it does—and what may be required to change it. Salmon and Thompson invite readers to reconsider whose interests truly drive the system, asking: Is this the best we can do?