Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare CEO Sam Hazen was paid 391 times more than the health system’s median employee in 2024, according to a March 4 proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Mr. Hazen’s total compensation was $23,799,137 in 2024. The total compensation of HCA’s median compensated employee was $60,820, according to the report. The ratio of these amounts was 391:1.
As of Dec. 31, HCA had 313,148 active employees who received compensation in 2024. To identify the median compensated employee, the company used a consistently applied compensation measure that included total gross payroll wages received. Pay was annualized for permanent employees not employed for a full year in 2024.
HCA said in the filing that the pay ratio is a “reasonable estimate calculated in a manner consistent with SEC rules” based on its payroll and employment records.
The SEC requires public companies to disclose how CEO pay compares to the median employee’s overall compensation each year.
In 2023, HCA’s CEO-to-worker pay ratio was 356:1. Mr. Hazen’s total compensation was $21,315,984 and the median compensated employee’s earnings were $59,816.
After Mr. Hazen, the highest earners at HCA in 2024 were COO Jon Foster and chief legal and administrative officer Michael McAlevey. Their total compensation was $9,170,258 and $5,738,785, respectively.
