Nearly three dozen healthcare leaders were included in this year’s list of the richest people in the world, according to Forbes, which recently published its “World’s Billionaires List.”
Spanning pharmaceuticals, medical devices and hospitals, the health leaders on the list made their fortunes in various areas of the industry.
Forbes’ annual list ranks the world’s richest based on their net worth, using stock prices and exchange rates from March 10, 2023. The number of billionaires fell from a year ago, with Forbes counting 2,640 ten-figure fortunes, down from 2,668 last year. In addition, nearly half of all billionaires in the world saw their fortunes fall from last year, with the collective wealth dropping about $500 billion from March 2022.
In the healthcare space, the richest person in 2023 was Thomas Frist Jr. and family. Frist and his father founded Hospital Corp. of America (HCA Healthcare) in 1968. HCA Healthcare owns and operates a chain of 187 hospitals and roughly 2,000 sites of care in the U.S. and U.K. Frist Jr. owns more than 20% of the company, according to Forbes, and his two sons, Thomas Frist III and William Frist, are board members.
Here are the top 10 U.S. billionaires in the healthcare industry and their net worth ranked on Forbes’ 2023 list as of April 10:
75. Thomas Frist Jr. & Family - Net worth $21.9B
182. Carl Cook - $10.2B
290. Reinhold Schmieding - $7.7B
319. Ronda Stryker - $7.4B
418. John Brown - $6.2B
444. Patrick Soon-Shiong - $5.9B
452. Li Ge - $5.8B
604. Jon Stryker - $4.6B
868. Pat Stryker - $3.4B
1102. Leonard Schleifer - $2.8B
See the full list here.
Amy joined TriMed Media as a Senior Writer for HealthExec after covering home care for three years. When not writing about all things healthcare, she fulfills her lifelong dream of becoming a pirate by sailing in regattas and enjoying rum. Fun fact: she sailed 333 miles across Lake Michigan in the Chicago Yacht Club "Race to Mackinac."