RI nonprofit health system won’t divulge new CEO’s compensation

The nonprofit group that runs three Rhode Island Hospitals including Women & Infants won't say whether its new chief executive will receive a seven-figure pay package that matches his predecessor's. Care New England tapped Cambridge Health Alliance CEO Dennis Keefe as its new president and CEO this week. He will succeed John Hynes, who is retiring, in August. Care New England spokeswoman May Kernan said the organization would not release details about Keefe's compensation. "Other than complying with public reporting requirements as part of the federal [IRS] 990 forms, we do not disclose personal salary information," she told WPRI.com in an email. Hynes' compensation totaled $1.5 million in 2008-09, up from $873,332 in 2007-08, tax records show. Hynes was the region's fourth-highest-paid hospital executive in a survey done last year. Lifespan CEO George Vecchione made the most: $9.5 million in 2008-09, up from $3.2 million in 2007-08, according to tax records. Lifespan's facilities include Rhode Island Hospital and The Miriam Hospital.