Reports: Healthcare execs still receiving substantial compensation, benefits

Approximately 70 percent of employers supplement their qualified health benefit plans with additional employer-funded, non-qualified retirement benefits for their senior executives is one of the major findings in a pair of studies on executive benefits and healthcare compensation published Oct. 31 from Integrated Healthcare Strategies, a compensation and human resource consulting firm.

“Supplemental plans providing an annual contribution were slightly more prevalent than those targeting a specified benefit at retirement,” the firm said.

In 2011, the benefit survey was separated from the compensation survey.

Median medical plan premiums for family coverage increased an average of 8 percent per year over the last three years, the executive benefit study reported, adding that a majority of organizations continue 100 percent of salary for executives during a short-term disability period through one or more disability programs. “The median salary replacement during a long-term disability is 60 percent and it is provided by group and supplemental disability plans at the executive level.”

According to the report, the trend is moving away from perquisites, except for items that can be treated as business expenses. The most prevalent perquisite remains an automobile or automobile allowance with 86 percent of CEOs receiving one or the other.

Data on staff compensation showed that, of the average single year wage growth rates, four of the top 10 positions are rehabilitation jobs. “These jobs had an average base wage growth rate of 2 percent or higher, year over year,” the report stated. “In 2011, 75 percent of all staff survey respondents indicated that their actual salary increase budget remained unchanged or increased from the previous year.”

Data on nursing compensation showed that 80 percent of respondents provided nursing positions with market increases over the last 12 months, while 87 percent of respondents indicated nursing positions were provided with merit increases. Nationally, organizations provided a 1.8 percent average total increase to staff level nursing positions within the last 12 months.

New hire rates for staff nurses are approximately $3.00 per hour higher for nurses with at least five years of experience, compared to entry level staff nurses. The same holds true for nurses with at least 10 years of experience, compared to nurses with five years of experience, the report added.

Data on leadership compensation showed that median same incumbent salary levels increased on average 3 percent at healthcare systems, and by 2.8 percent at independent and subsidiary hospitals. CEOs who are eligible for both short- and long-term incentives have a total incentive opportunity as high as 80-100 percent of salary at target or expected value. C-suite executives, on average, received a short-term incentive award between 25 to 35 percent of salary at healthcare systems, and between 18 to 27 percent of salary at independent and subsidiary hospitals, the report concluded.