Dive Brief:
- Cigna CEO David Cordani got a drastic increase in total compensation last year, 4.5 times the amount he earned in 2012, according to the Hartford Courant.
- Cordani took home $17.76 million in 2013, including $1 million in salary, $2.16 million in incentive plan compensation, $3.25 million in value realized on exercising previously granted options, $11.16 million in value realized upon stocks vesting and more than $150,000 in other compensation.
- Though the largest, his was not the only staggering paycheck for 2013. For example, Cigna Chief Financial Officer Thomas McCarthy earned $3.87 million, plus stock awards of $1.84 million and option awards of greater than $220,000.
Dive Insight:
To me, these high salaries and lavish benefits say one thing: that Cigna expects to do well after the initial period of ferment around the ACA, and wants to keep its management team in place for when things settle down to something more like established business. As long as Cigna can keep its numbers up -- both financial performance numbers and stock prices -- the uncertainty around how ACA policies will play out won't dent pay in Cigna's C-suite.