The Board of Directors for the Western Maryland Health System is charged with the fiduciary responsibility of assuring that area residents have access to essential health care services. In addition to overseeing the quality of those services, we also are obligated to ensure the appropriate use of funds.
We are fortunate to have skilled and experienced leaders on our senior management team. Running a hospital in today’s environment is a most challenging job based on the complexity of what hospitals do. From the routine to the catastrophic, 24/7 access to care is provided for all patients, regardless of their ability to pay. Virtually all phases of our operations are highly regulated, and our physical facilities must provide each patient with a safe, quality experience. It is becoming increasingly more difficult to keep the hospital financially viable as payment reform in Maryland and national healthcare reform efforts continue.
The WMHS Board of Director’s compensation philosophy is based on our commitment to attract and retain highly competent executives to further our mission. We compete with hospitals across the country for talented individuals to join WMHS, and our salaries must be comparable to hospitals of similar size and complexity.
The compensation for the executive team at WMHS is set by the WMHS Board of Directors based on the recommendation of our Executive Compensation Committee. This committee works with Mercer, a national firm that specializes in wage and compensation issues, to review and determine executive compensation.
Mercer provides the board with data from national compensation surveys of hospitals that are like WMHS. These hospitals are similar in size and scope with $300 million in annual net operating revenue and based in similar locations, both in the region and across the country. The Executive Compensation Committee bases its recommendation on this competitive market analysis and targets compensation at mid-range of comparable institutions.
As a not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization, WMHS also must meet IRS requirements ensuring that our executive compensation is reasonable and appropriate. Mercer provides documentation that WMHS is providing executive compensation at reasonable levels with like organizations in Maryland and across the U.S.
Another benchmark used for comparison is Maryland’s ranking of administrative and general expenses according to equivalent inpatient days. According to the most recent data available, WMHS ranks among the lowest in the state, coming in at 45 out of 48 hospitals in Maryland.
We believe the community is well served to have the caliber of individuals who comprise our senior management team. They had the experience and skills necessary to bring a new state-of-the-art medical center to this community as well as to lead this organization through these challenging times.
It is important, however, to clarify that the WMHS 990 filing for 2010 includes a one-time, 3-year deferred pension payment for Mr. (Barry) Ronan that was held until the successful opening of the new Western Maryland Regional Medical Center November 2009. His base salary for that year was approximately $475,000.
Opinion
WMHS board responds to inquiries about executives’ compensation
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Walk Smart
Many local residents will be visiting Ocean City this summer, so it is worth noting that the resort has launched a campaign that it hopes will keep pedestrians out of harm’s way.
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Trailer case bound to increase scrutiny on town of Piedmont
This letter is in response to the recent story concerning the guilty plea entered in federal court by Piedmont’s town foreman (“Piedmont town foreman Shingler enters guilty plea,” May 21 Times-News, Page 1A).
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Fixing community’s problems starts with your young people
I am writing this letter to the editor because I think our community really needs to work on plenty of issues. Some of them are:
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High priority
Maryland school officials on Tuesday put an exclamation point on the need to take student-athlete concussions more seriously.
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Why are there no answers to these questions?
We currently have the most corrupt administration in the history of the country. Every day more and more lies come from the Obama administration.
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Roaming dogs prove menace to some residents of LaVale
I am writing to inform your readers and the animal control staff of Allegany about a problem that is dragging on and unresolved, yet.
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These types should look to the Boy Scouts for an example
Consider these headlines:
NRA will “Never Surrender.”
The Tea Party will “Never Surrender.”
The No Tax Group will “Never surrender.”
Neocons will “Never Surrender.”
Far Left Liberals will “Never Surrender.” -
Housing project will have bad effect on property in this area
I am writing to you to voice my opposition to a low income housing project that has been proposed for construction on a tract of land on Pine Swamp Road in Mineral County, W.Va. I am a registered voter and resident of Mineral County and live in the New Creek/Pine Swamp area.
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Why have the media been silent all this time?
When I read the Cumberland Times-News Editorial this morning, Friday, May 17, entitled, “Outrageous,” I laughed like a kid at a birthday party!
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What are chances this much money will be spent on road?
I was intrigued by cost data summarized in reporter Kathy Mellott’s recent article, “Completing southern link of U.S. Route 219 said to be best use of highway funds,” which appeared in the Cumberland Times-News on Tuesday May 14 (Page 1A).
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