The compensation committee of HCA Healthcare's board of directors adopted a senior officer performance bonus program for 2021 on April 9, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. 

The CEOs of some of the biggest hospital and health insurance companies saw their pay soar last year, despite challenges linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Insider. 

Some top executives at major for-profit hospital operators saw their total compensation rise last year, while others saw total pay decline. 

The average annual wage across all healthcare support occupations in the U.S. was $32,250 in May 2020, according to the latest data released March 31 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. 

The average annual salary for nurse practitioners in the U.S. is $114,510, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' occupational employment statistics survey, released March 31.

The average annual salary for physician assistants in the U.S. is $116,080, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' occupational employment statistics survey, released March 31.

The average annual salary for registered nurses in the U.S. is $80,010, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' occupational employment statistics survey released March 31.

An additional 36 years have been added to the estimated time it will take to close the gender pay gap, bringing the total to 135 years, according to a March 30 report published by the World Economic Forum.

Sentara Healthcare has boosted its hourly minimum wage to $15 and is providing across-the-board 3 percent merit pay increases to employees, the organization said.

Though some top executives at Tenet Healthcare received base salary raises last year, the Dallas-based company's CEO and COO ended 2020 with lower total compensation, according to Tenet's shareholder proxy statement.

Norfolk, Va.-based Sentara Healthcare is giving bonuses of up to $1,500 to employees to reward them for their work during the COVID-19 pandemic, the health system said. 

HCA Healthcare should look into increasing the role quality metrics plays in executive compensation, a shareholder of the Nashville, Tenn.-based hospital operator proposed.

Though top executives at Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare accepted reductions in their base salaries last year, four of the company's top executives ended 2020 with higher total compensation, according to HCA's shareholder proxy statement.

Winston-Salem, N.C.-based Wake Forest Baptist Health plans to invest $23 million in market adjustments and pay alignments, including raising its minimum wage to $15 per hour, the organization said March 3.

Naples, Fla.-based NCH Healthcare, a two-hospital system with about 4,900 employees, said it is increasing staff pay and benefits in recognition of staff's work during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The economic effects from the pandemic may place more pressure on investors to reevaluate the pay packages of CEOs in the future. But for the time being, "we are simply getting wealthier CEOs," according to an annual report from the nonprofit shareholder advocacy group As You Sow.

Tim Hingtgen began serving as CEO of Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems on Jan. 1, and he'll get a base salary of $1.2 million this year, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. 

The University of Kansas Health System in Kansas City, Kan., has boosted its minimum wage to $15 per hour.

Trinity Health System is offering medical laboratory technicians up to $4,000 to join the Steubenville, Ohio-based organization, according to a Facebook post. 

Eligible county healthcare workers in Virginia's Fairfax County will receive one-time hazard pay bonuses of up to $2,000 during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to WTOP.