Aetna (Meritain Health)

Connecticut
Health Care Equipment and Services

Risk Level:

Rating - Caution
Medium Risk

Summary:

Aetna operates largely under the leadership of its parent company, CVS Health. Aetna protects against viewpoint and religious discrimination in its hiring policy for employees. However, Aetna does not match employee donations to religious organizations the same way it does for secular charities. CVS Health advocates for ideological policies like the Equality Act and funds the Human Rights Campaign (HRC). For these reasons, Aetna receives a "Medium Risk" rating.

Criteria
Risk Level
Rationale
Corporate Weaponization
Criteria

Has denied service to customers, suppliers, or vendors due to their political views or religious beliefs OR corporately boycotts, divests, or sanctions regions, people groups, or industries.

Risk Level
Rationale

Aetna has not terminated any business relationships due to viewpoints or beliefs. However, its parent company, CVS Health, received a score of 100 on the Corporate Equality Index from the HRC (1). Among other requirements, this means the company has pledged to vet vendors based on LGBTQ policies.

Criteria

Charitable giving (including employee matching programs) policies or practices discriminate against charitable organizations based on views or religious beliefs.

Risk Level
Rationale

Aetna does not match employee giving to all religious organizations (1). Aetna employees are highly engaged in volunteering, but the company does not monetize hours at religious organizations as they do for secular organizations (1).

Criteria

Employment policies fail to protect against discrimination based on political affiliation/views and/or religion.

Risk Level
Rationale

Aetna protects against religious and viewpoint discrimination through its equal opportunity policy (1).

Corporate Governance and Public Policy
Criteria

Uses corporate reputation to support ideological causes and/or organizations hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level
Rationale

Aetna’s parent company CVS advocates for the Equality Act and transgender participation in girls’ sports (1) (2). Furthermore, CVS has committed to multiple acts of engagement for the LGBTQ community (3). Whistleblowers allege that CVS has mandatory “antiracism” training programs that feature core tenets of critical race theory (4)(5)(6). The company signed an open letter opposing a Florida bill that would prevent teaching gender identity and sexual orientation in schools to kids in K-3rd grade (7).

Criteria

Uses corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression.

Risk Level
Rationale

Aetna does not use corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies hostile to freedom of expression (1)(2). Its parent company, CVS Health, is a corporate sponsor of the HRC (3).

Criteria

Uses corporate political contributions for ideological, non-business purposes.

Risk Level
Rationale

CVS, the parent company, is responsible for all of Aetna’s corporate PAC giving. CVS Health has donated to the Equality PAC (1).

All links were last accessed and all information was updated on:
March 23, 2023

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