Thread regarding Humana Inc. layoffs

When Crime Pays in the Boardroom

Why do companies break the law? Because too often, the math works in their favor. If the fine for cheating is less than the profit made from cheating, lawbreaking becomes just another line item—a calculated cost of doing business. Regulators, underfunded and outpaced, can’t catch every violation, and executives rewarded on quarterly results have little incentive to play fair.

The result is a marketplace where honesty is penalized and shortcuts are rewarded. A competitor who follows the rules pays more, earns less, and risks being pushed out. That’s not just unfair—it corrodes trust in markets, institutions, and even democracy itself.

The fix isn’t complicated: raise penalties to match the scale of profits, increase the odds of detection, and hold individuals—not just corporations—accountable. Until then, companies will continue to choose illegality not because they must, but because it pays.

So Humana made billions from their illegal deal and paying millions in court judgements plus lawyers fees is so cheap net gain out way the penalty. Companies do it all the time.
From a cold numeric view, breaking the law can look “cheaper” when detection is unlikely and penalties are low.