In four years, Michael Tarwater, CEO of Charlotte, N.C.-based Carolinas HealthCare System, took at least 29 personal flights on the system's patient and organ transport planes, according to a WBTV report.
The system admitted Mr. Tarwater used its five planes for personal travel from 2008 through 2012, often co-piloting. The planes are most often used for medical purposes, such as transporting patients in critical condition and retrieving organs for transplant, according to the report.
A system spokesperson said the CEO's trips make up less than 1 percent of the more than 4,000 flights taken by Carolinas planes in that timeframe, but the admission is still raising some eyebrows due to Carolinas' nonprofit status.
The spokesperson also told WBTV Mr. Tarwater's flights were counted as part of his compensation, which totaled about $4.8 million in 2012, according to the report. A system spokesperson said the trips comply with federal guidelines, as Mr. Tarwater reported less than $2,500 per year as income attributable to personal flights.
Plane privileges as part of compensation are typically reserved for executives at for-profit hospitals or health systems. Wayne Smith, chairman, president and CEO of Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems, was compensated more than $92,000 for personal use of CHS' private airplane in 2012, for instance. Gary Newsome, the former president and CEO of Naples, Fla.-based Health Management Associates, also received $98,920 for personal use of Health Management's aircraft in fiscal year 2012.
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