The poop-testing startup was outright defrauding its customers and their insurance companies. This is qualitatively and legally different from price gouging/discrimination/inflation for bona fide medical services.

The argument is akin to saying "what about the Sackler family" in response to a criticism of Theranos, as though that somehow vindicates Theranos.

At best, you're suggesting the "everyone's doing it" defense applies in this case. If a cop won't let you out of a speeding ticket because others, too, were speeding, then why should we let the poop-testing startup off the hook because other crimes have also been committed in the same broken system?

Nobody is suggesting the poop startup is not at fault.

Nobody is suggesting that anyone is suggesting that the poop startup is not at fault. Rather, the original suggestion was an interpretation about the relative black-heartedness of bad behavior in the healthcare industry:

> I don’t think the alleged crimes committed by them or Theranos are nearly as bad as the ones committed by big pharma and uspto and the rest of the healthcare industry

This pivot is why, I presume, there was an initial response that touched on whataboutism.