At Bronx-Lebanon, a hospital that exists only by the grace and taxed fortunes of the people of New York State, the CEO was paid $4.8 million in 2007 and $3.6 million in 2008, records show. At NewYork-Presbyterian, a hospital system that receives nearly half a billion dollars annually in public money, the CEO was paid $9.8 million in 2007 and $2.8 million in 2008. In an urgent search to cut the state's healthcare costs and lift revenue, a task force came up with a plan to increase the cost of a hospital stay by $5 and to limit housekeeping services for the disabled in their homes. One area of plump costs, however, remained undisturbed: executive suites where salaries and compensation run into the millions of dollars, even at the most financially struggling hospitals. A proposal to allow public financing for only the first $1 million in wages for an executive died before it even reached the task force.
