Molina CEO tops highest-paid list at public US health insurers in 2022

Molina Healthcare Inc.'s top boss, Joseph Zubretsky, benefited from a 10.9% pay bump to finish 2022 as the highest-paid CEO among US-listed managed care insurers, according to an S&P Global Market Intelligence analysis.

Zubretsky received $22.1 million in total compensation in 2022, the bulk of which came from $15 million in stock grants. The rest of the total comprised cash compensation of $1.6 million and $5.6 million from a nonequity incentive compensation plan.

Zubretsky, who was named chief executive in 2017, made 293 times the median salary of a Molina employee in 2022.

The second-highest paid CEO for 2022 was The Cigna Group's David Cordani with a total compensation of $21 million, 277 times that of the median Cigna employee salary.

The majority of Cordani's compensation came from stocks granted, of which he received $12.6 million. Cordani also received $1.8 million in cash compensation, $2.9 million in options granted and $3.6 million in nonequity incentive plan compensation.

Cordani saw a 5.5% growth in salary year over year, the second-smallest rise in compensation among the six highest-paid US managed care CEOs.

Elevance Health Inc.'s Gail Boudreaux was jointly the third-highest paid managed care CEO in 2022, with total compensation of $20.9 million.

Continuing the trend, the majority of Boudreaux's compensation came from stocks granted, of which she received $11.1 million. She also received $2.3 million in cash compensation, $3.7 million in options granted and $3.8 million in nonequity incentive plan compensation.

Boudreaux's compensation presented the largest gap between employee salary, with the Elevance CEO making 383 times that of a median employee. She saw an 8.2% jump in salary, the third highest among the six highest-paid managed care CEOs.

Although ranking jointly as the third-highest paid managed care CEO for 2022, UnitedHealth Group Inc. CEO Andrew Witty saw the largest percentage increase in salary year over year and received the largest stock and options awarded.

Witty, who made 331 times the median UnitedHealth employee salary in 2022, received a 13.2% pay bump year over year for a total compensation of $20.9 million. Of this total, $16.5 million was from stocks and options awarded, with $1.6 million in cash compensation and $2.8 million in nonequity incentive plan compensation making up the rest.

In fourth place, Humana Inc. CEO Bruce Broussard received $17.2 million in total compensation for 2022.

Broussard saw a slight decline to his total stocks and options awarded year over year, with a total of $12.4 million in 2022, falling $200,000 from 2021. The rest of his salary was made up of $1.7 million in cash compensation and $3.1 million in nonequity incentive plan compensation.

His compensation grew 4.1% year over year, the second-lowest rise among the six CEOs. He made 238 times as much as the median Humana employee.

Sarah London, who was vice chairman of Centene Corp.'s board prior to being appointed CEO in March 2022, was the sole CEO among the largest six managed care CEOs to see compensation decline year over year.

London's compensation fell 13% from 2021 to $13.2 million, which was 171 times the salary of a median Centene employee, the smallest ratio among the six CEOs.

London's stocks and options figure was also the smallest at $7.6 million, down from $12.1 million in 2021. She saw the largest decline for stocks and options awarded as well, falling $4.4 million.