Three physician billionaires have taken vastly different paths to wealth, including a hospital empire, a cancer drug breakthrough and a biotech built from scratch.
Here’s how the wealth of three physician billionaires have evolved since 2022:
Thomas Frist Jr., MD
Dr. Frist is the co-founder of HCA Healthcare, is the major shareholder of the health system, a for-profit operator of about 2,400 care sites, including ASCs, freestanding emergency rooms and urgent care centers and physician clinics.
Dr. Frist co-founded the publicly traded health system with his father in the 1960s. He took it public for the third time in 2011 after two management buyouts and owns over 25% of the company with his family. While Dr. Frist doesn’t have an executive position at HCA, his sons, Thomas Frist III and William Frist, are board members.
2026: $45.4 billion
2025: $27 billion
2024: $26.2 billion
2023: $20.2 billion
2022: $21.8 billion
Patrick Soon-Shiong, MD
Best known for developing the cancer drug Abraxane, Dr. Soon-Shiong sold two pharmaceutical companies — Abraxis in 2010 and American Pharmaceutical Partners in 2008 — for a combined $9.1 billion. He later took two ventures public: NantKwest in 2015 and NantHealth in 2016, both focused on cancer treatment and biotechnology.
2026: $9.1 billion
2025: $5.9 billion
2024: $6.2 billion
2023: $5.8 billion
2022: $7.3 billion
Leonard Schleifer, MD, PhD
Dr. Schleifer co-founded Regeneron Pharmaceuticals in 1988 and continues to serve as CEO. He led the company through its IPO in 1991 and currently holds just under 4% of its stock. Regeneron is known for several FDA-approved drugs, with its blockbuster macular degeneration treatment Eylea standing out as a major success.
2026: $2.8 billion
2025: $2.6 billion
2024: $3.5 billion
2023: $2.6 billion2022: $1.2 billion
At the Becker’s 32nd Annual Meeting: The Business and Operations of ASCs, taking place October 29-31 in Chicago, ASC leaders, surgeons and healthcare executives will explore strategies to drive growth, enhance operational performance, navigate reimbursement challenges and prepare for the future of ambulatory surgery. Apply for complimentary registration now.
