How much north-central Pennsylvania nonprofit hospital executives are paid

To get a broader picture of executive pay at nonprofit hospitals in north-central PA, Spotlight PA compiled a list of salaries and bonuses from facilities in the region.

• By Ashad Hajela of Spotlight PA State College

This story first appeared in Talk of the Town, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA’s State College regional bureau featuring the most important news and happenings in north-central Pennsylvania.

A Commonwealth Court judge recently revoked the property tax exemption of a nonprofit hospital in Southeastern Pennsylvania because its parent company was operating with a profit motive, as previously reported by Spotlight PA.

Tower Health charged the hospitals it owned exorbitant management fees, Judge Christine Fizzano Cannon found. The ruling also found executives were being paid “eye-popping” salaries and bonuses were tied to the health system’s financial success.

Former Tower Health CEO Clint Matthews was paid about $2.5 million in salary and bonuses in fiscal year 2020, according to the tax forms that nonprofits are required to submit to the IRS.

In north-central Pennsylvania, most hospitals are part of larger health systems such as University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), Geisinger, and Penn Highlands.

In fiscal year 2020, the CEOs of those systems raked in seven-figure incomes. Jeffrey Romoff of UPMC made $9.5 million; Jaewon Ryu of Geisinger made $4.6 million; and Steve Fontaine of Penn Highlands made $1.1 million.

To get a broader picture of executive pay at nonprofit hospitals in north-central Pennsylvania, Spotlight PA compiled a list of salary and bonus totals from facilities in the region. The data, which come from hospitals and related organizations, are sourced from the nonprofits’ tax forms for fiscal year 2020, the most recent year for which data is available.

In some cases, the chief executive of the hospital is not the highest paid employee.

Facility name, county, chief executive, title, payment:

• UPMC Williamsport and UPMC Muncy (Lycoming): Steven Johnson (former president), $1.1 million (another document shows $996,352)
• Mount Nittany Medical Center (Centre): Kathleen Rhine (CEO), $1.1 million
• Evangelical Community Hospital (Union): Kendra Aucker (CEO), $887,429
• UPMC Altoona and UPMC Bedford* (Blair, Bedford): Jan Fisher (CEO), $791,814
• Penn Highlands DuBois (Clearfield): John Sutika (former president), $507,534
• Geisinger Lewistown Hospital (Mifflin): Kirk E. Thomas (CAO for Geisinger Western Region), $333,457
• Geisinger Jersey Shore Hospital (Lycoming): Tammy Anderer (CAO for Geisinger North-Central Region), $315,017
• Punxsutawney Area Hospital (Jefferson): Daniel Blough (former CEO), $311,269
• UPMC Wellsboro and UPMC Cole (Tioga, Potter): Janie Hilfiger (president), $294,086
• Penn Highlands Huntingdon (Huntingdon): Joseph Myers (CEO), $293,667
• Penn Highlands Elk (Elk): Brad Chapman (CEO), $283,242
• UPMC Lock Haven (Clinton): Ronald Reynolds (president), $278,000
• Penn Highlands Clearfield (Clearfield): Rhonda Halstead (president), $258,826
• Penn Highlands Brookville (Jefferson): Julianne Peer (president), $245,993
• UPMC Kane (McKean): Mark Papalia (president), $160,538
• Penn Highlands Tyrone (Blair): Anna Marie Anna (CEO), $120,776**
• Bucktail Medical Center (Clinton): Timothy Reeves (director), $90,683

*Outside Spotlight PA State College’s 14-county coverage area

**Appointed in the middle of the fiscal year

Ashad Hajela is a Report for America corps member and writes about rural affairs for Spotlight PA’s State College regional bureau.