CEO adds details of contract CEO adds details of contract (April 22, 2005)

Move marks end to public records request by Voice
By Kathy Schrenk

El Camino Hospital CEO Lee Domanico last week released to the Voice the final details of his compensation package -- the home loan and retirement plan -- after a second Public Records Act request was filed by the paper March 30.

Domanico told the Voice his retirement and flex-benefit compensation during the 2003-2004 fiscal year totaled more than $237,000, bringing the figure for all of his salary and benefits to $939,634. That included more than $110,000 in one-time expenses paid by the hospital to reimburse him for closing costs associated with the sale of his two Southern California homes.

Hospital officials assert that Domanico's salary and benefits are in line with other hospitals in the Bay Area, adding that it's difficult to make an apples-to-apples comparison because El Camino is a stand-alone hospital while almost all others are part of systems. This means that Domanico has an extra level of administration to oversee that most local CEOs don't.

Hospital officials also maintain that Domanico has earned his keep, pulling the institution out of a multi-million-dollar deficit and into the black in five years, while also helping the hospital win multiple awards for excellence. Last year, El Camino was named one of the four top quality hospitals in the country by the Commonwealth Fund.

El Camino ranks well above state and national averages in employee satisfaction, employee turnover, physician satisfaction and patient satisfaction, according to an independent survey.

Domanico's original recruitment package -- which brought him to El Camino from Southern California five years ago -- included an $850,000 home loan at 6 percent interest, which is forgiven gradually over 10 years.

Some doctors are offered a similar package when they are recruited. Seven doctors at the hospital participate in the program on a five or 10-year basis.

In retirement, Domanico gets 60 percent of his average salary and bonuses over his last few years of employment. He forfeits that if he leaves the hospital for a competitor.

Domanico said he hopes the release of this information puts an end to the saga.

"Now that we've put this issue behind us," he said in a statement, "we look forward to communicating important information that impacts the health and well-being of our community."

The Voice filed a lawsuit in February after trying for several months to obtain Domanico's contract from the hospital. Hospital board chair Mark O'Connor had said that Domanico's contract is protected from disclosure by the U.S. Constitution and a special tax exemption by the Internal Revenue Service after a Public Records Act request filed by the Voice on Dec. 10.

In an attempt to settle the suit, Domanico revealed his 2004 salary on March 2 as $441,000 in base salary and $174,000 in bonuses last year. In addition, Domanico receives an annual $9,000 car allowance.

Also in March the hospital released his employment contract, which revealed that Domanico is entitled to a housing loan from the hospital district and a social membership with the Los Altos Golf and Country Club, worth an initial fee of $30,000 and dues of around $3,600 a year. The contract also states that if he is terminated, El Camino will continue to pay Domanico his full base salary for two years.

Hospital officials believe that Domanico's compensation is comparable to similar hospitals in the area. Nancy Farber, CEO at Washington Hospital in Fremont, has a salary of $408,071. Washington has 337 beds, while El Camino has 395.

The John Muir Health System in Contra Costa County has two hospitals totaling 580 beds, and CEO Kendall Anderson made $572,593 in 2002.

Other hospital CEOs make anywhere from about $350,000 to nearly $900,000, and the head of 40-hospital chain Catholic Healthcare West makes $1.4 million.
E-mail Kathy Schrenk at kschrenk@mv-voice.com

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