CEOs of three major employers of physicians were deemed "overpaid" in As You Sow's 10th report covering S&P 500 companies.
Walmart, CVS Health and Walgreens Boots Alliance have all made headway into the world of primary care in the last year, and their CEOs made the nonprofit advocacy group's report.
The list analyzes excess pay, calculated by comparing CEO pay to total shareholder return, the percentage of shares that voted against the CEO pay package and the ratio of CEO pay to median employee pay.
Walmart
Walmart's CEO, C. Douglas McMillon, was ranked 19th on As You Sow's list — with a base pay of $25.31 million and $10.2 million in excess pay. The company's CEO-to-worker pay ratio is 933-to-1, and 46% of the company's shareholders voted against CEO pay.
Walmart Health clinics offer primary and urgent care, labs, X-ray and diagnostics, behavioral health, dental and hearing services. The company plans to open 28 new Walmart centers by the first quarter of 2024, which will bring its total to 75 locations by the end of 2024.
On Nov. 1, Walmart signed its first partnership with a health system, Orlando (Fla.) Health.
CVS Health
CVS Health's CEO, Karen Lynch, was ranked 46th on the list with a base pay of $21.32 million and $6.5 million in excess pay. The company's CEO-to-worker pay ratio is 380-to-1, and 12% of the company's shareholders voted against CEO pay.
CVS Health, known for its in-store MinuteClinics for vaccinations and urgent care, has zeroed in on physician care in 2023, inking two major physician deals. CVS now employs more than 40,000 physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses and pharmacists.
In March, it completed its $8 billion acquisition of Signify Health, adding more than 10,000 clinicians to its network. In February, CVS entered a $10.5 billion definitive agreement to acquire Chicago-based Oak Street Health, a primary care network for Medicare members.
The company also offers virtual primary care, team-based primary care from Aetna, retail primary care at MinuteClinic.
Walgreens
Walgreens Boots Alliance's former CEO, Rosalind Brewer, was ranked 56th on the list — with a base pay of $17.29 million and $3.08 million in excess pay. The company's CEO-to-worker pay ratio is 705-to-1, and 13% of the company's shareholders voted against CEO pay.
Walgreens Boots Alliance has also doubled down on physician deals in the last year, most notably the $8.9 billion acquisition of physician practice group by VillageMD, which is majority owned by Walgreens Boots Alliance, in December. VillageMD also acquired Dallas Internal Medicine and Geriatrics Specialists in January.
VillageMD has more than 20,000 employees and 700 practices across 26 markets.
In October, however, Walgreens announced that VillageMD will exit about five markets and close around 60 clinics in 2024 in an effort to cut at least $1 billion in costs as it welcomes its new CEO.