Multiple national payers have released their annual proxy reports, offering a glimpse at what top industry execs earned in 2021.
Of the four insurers that have published proxy statements so far this year, Centene Corporation's CEO Michael Neidorff edged out close competition to be the highest-paid executive. Neidorff earned $20.6 million in total compensation in 2021, down from the $24.9 million he earned in 2020 as the industry's highest-paid exec.
Neidorff's base salary was $1.8 million, the same as in 2020, according to the filing. He earned $12.7 million in stock awards, of which $6.7 million were performance-based and $6 million were service-based.
In addition, Neidorff brought in $2.2 million in option awards and $3.4 million in non-equity incentive plan compensation, according to the report.
The median employee at Centene earned $71,217 in 2021, for a CEO pay ratio of 290:1.
Neidorff announced in December that he plans to retire this year and that he plans to stay on as executive chairman through the end of 2022 to aid in the transition. The company then announced in late February that he would take an extended leave of absence for medical reasons.
Neidorff's total compensation just surpasses that of Cigna chief David Cordani, who earned $19.9 million in total compensation for 2021. That includes a $1.5 million base salary and $11.7 million in stock awards, according to Cigna's proxy filing.
Cordani also earned $3.6 million in option awards and $2.7 million in non-equity incentive plan compensation for the year.
The median employee compensation at Cigna was $66,917 in 2021, according to the report, establishing a 297:1 to CEO pay ratio.
Anthem CEO Gail Boudreaux ranked a close third among the four proxies we analyzed, earning $19.3 million in total compensation for 2021. Her pay included a nearly $1.6 million base salary and $9.9 million in stock options for the year.
Boudreaux also earned $3.3 million in option awards and $4 million in non-equity incentive plan compensation for 2021. The CEO pay ratio at Anthem was 379:1, with the median employee earning $51,005 last year.
The lowest earner of the four companies we examined was Humana CEO Bruce Broussard, who brought in $16.5 million in total compensation for 2021. He earned $9.8 million in stock awards and $2.8 million in option awards on top of a $1.3 million base salary.
In addition, Broussard brought in $2.1 million in non-equity incentive plan compensation, according to the report.
The median Humana employee earned $64,747 in 2021, for a CEO pay ratio of 255:1.