Dive Brief:
- Accretive Health's CEO, Dr. Emad Rizk, made $20.6 million in his first year on the job in 2014.
- Stock and options awards totaled $20.3 million and $338,835 in salary was disclosed in a proxy statement prior to the annual shareholders meeting to be held August 14.
- The company justified the salary in its statement: "By making the greatest portion of our CEO's compensation package in the form of performance-based pay, with value directly tied to the increase in value of our organization and thus our stock price, we aim to ensure that our executive compensation packages are strongly focused on pay-for-performance, not merely attraction and retention."
Dive Insight:
Accretive, which helps hospitals collect on bills from both patients and payers, has had a troubled history. The company disclosed a net loss of almost $80 million in 2014, compared to a $130 million profit in 2013. Dr. Rizk became CEO in July 2014 and has focused on fixing a company that had been accused of preying on vulnerable patients, according to Modern Healthcare. The company did achieve several goals last year, including boosting its investment in IT and making results more consistent for customers, but its executive compensation package may raise some eyebrows.
Other company compensation: CFO and treasurer Peter Csapo made $3.1 million in 2014. COO Joseph Flanagan received $6.1 million (a 40% decrease from 2013, due primarily to a decline to stock and options awards).