Doctors, unions and city officials push bill capping hospital CEO pay at 50x lowest wage

BOSTON — Physicians, union leaders and a Worcester city councilor urged the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing on Wednesday to advance House Bill 1398 and Senate Bill 899, legislation that would require hospitals receiving public funds to disclose detailed financials, cap chief executive pay at 50 times the facility’s lowest-paid full-time employee and deposit penalties into a Medicaid reimbursement enhancement fund.

Supporters said the measure aims to redirect hospital revenue toward patient care and understaffed community programs. "This bill will cap health care CEO pay," said Taylor Walker, president of the physician union CIR‑SEIU, testifying in person. "It is really a moral imperative."

The bill would require hospitals to publish asset and compensation information and create monetary penalties for systems that both exceed operating margin limits and breach the proposed executive-compensation cap. Proponents said…