District Hospital CEOs Earn Less Than Peers at Non-Public Facilities
In California, CEOs of public district hospitals often earn significantly lower salaries than their peers at other types of not-for-profit hospitals, according to data recently released by the office of State Controller John Chiang (D), Payers & Providers reports.
State officials say the data from the controller's office are slightly skewed because the figures for base income include bonuses, car stipends and other taxable income in addition to salary.
Key Data
Of the 51 hospital districts that submitted reports to the controller's office, 38 reported that they have CEOs or executive directors who receive some form of compensation.
According to the data, CEOs of district hospitals received an average of $230,876 in base compensation and an average of $245,947 in overall compensation in 2009.
In comparison, CEOs at not-for-profit hospitals in California -- excluding district hospitals -- receive an average of $514,237 in base compensation and an average of $732,004 in overall compensation, according to 2007 and 2008 data analyzed by Payers & Providers.
Differences in Facility Size
District hospital leaders in California generally manage facilities that are significantly smaller than typical acute care hospitals.
Data from the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development show that the average hospital size in California was 208 beds in 2009. In comparison, the average size of the district hospitals that submitted data to Chiang was 114 beds.
According to Payers & Providers, CEOs of district hospitals receive an average compensation of $4,393 per bed, while CEOs of not-for-profit hospitals receive an average compensation of $4,102 per bed (Payers & Providers, 3/10).
This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.