Aetna CEO Mark Bertolini spoke with Yahoo! Finance about the two events that shaped his views on healthcare. The first was when his son, Eric, was diagnosed with a deadly form of lymphoma in 2001. Eric is currently the sole survivor of the disease.
The second event occurred in 2001 when Mr. Bertolini was in a skiing accident, thereby damaging his spinal cord. He is partially disabled from the accident.
Both these events transformed his views on healthcare with the executive's main takeaway being healthcare "fixes what's broken."
He told Yahoo! Finance, "Thinking of me as a whole human being, engaging in my own life and being back in society in a way that was productive and useful for me was not on their agenda."
From that point on, Aetna has focused on a holistic approach to care. Aetna has launched programs to get rid of food deserts as well as programs helping students improve their studies.