Posted on 12/07/2007 3:30:23 PM PST by eartotheground
In one of the largest executive-pay givebacks in history, former UnitedHealth Group Inc. Chief Executive William McGuire has agreed to forfeit about $620 million in stock-option gains and retirement pay to settle civil and federal-government claims related to stock-option backdating.
The settlement comes a year after the options-backdating scandal led to Dr. McGuire's ouster from the Minnetonka, Minn., company, one of the largest U.S. health insurers. -snip- In the scandal, dozens of companies pretended that options were granted at an earlier date than they actually were. They picked dates when the stock price was at a low point, allowing executives to reap outsize gains.
The giant payment helped to settle a separate Securities and Exchange Commission complaint, which also included an additional $7 million civil penalty, the largest to date against an individual in a backdating case.
Dr. McGuire still faces a criminal inquiry into the UnitedHealth options scandal by the U.S. attorney in Manhattan, although it isn't clear whether that will continue, in light of the SEC action. It is also possible that other former UnitedHealth executives will be targeted by the SEC, which said its investigation continues.
Dr. McGuire steadfastly denied that he backdated the options. But last year, an internal probe at UnitedHealth concluded that millions of stock options were likely backdated on Dr. McGuire's watch. -snip- -snip- Yesterday, the SEC backed the board's conclusion, stating flatly that Dr. McGuire used "hindsight to pick advantageous grant dates."
Of the options surrendered, 5.6 million were dated Oct. 13, 1999, when UnitedHealth's stock price hit an annual low. The rest were granted between 2003 and 2006.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
According to the Times, Shalala lives in a 9000 square foot mansion (owned by the university), with mango trees in the garden. She drives a Lexus (hybrid, naturally). She owns a 29 foot boat, but doesn't get to use it much. She has house-hold help who makes her bed for her.
After the Times article was published, a Washington Post commentator wrote,
Note to the Haves: When involved in a labor dispute, skip the luxury home profile.
Then the story hit the blogsphere. Wonkette's post on the story was entitled, "Let Them Eat Mangoes."
So the second irony is obvious.
But there is a third irony.
Not reported by any newspaper, so far, is another responsibility Shalala now has. In her spare time, Shalala is a director of UnitedHealth Group, the parent company for the UnitedHealth managed care organization, and hence has a fiduciary duty to the UnitedHealth. This company's mission statement includes,
UnitedHealth Group is a diversified health and well-being company dedicated to making the health care system work better. The company directs its resources into designing products, providing services and applying technologies that: * Improve access to health and well-being services; * Simplify the health care experience; * Promote quality; and, * Make health care more affordable.
The benefits received by directors are as follows, per United's 2005 proxy statement,
Directors who are not Company employees receive an annual retainer of $30,000, a $1,500 fee for attending each Board meeting in person ($750 for attending by telephone), and a $1,000 fee for attending each committee meeting in person ($500 for attending by telephone). Directors also receive the standard fee for attendance by telephone if they are unable to attend a meeting, but receive an update by telephone prior to or after the meeting. In addition, we pay the Chairman of each of the Audit Committee and the Compensation and Human Resources Committee an annual retainer of $5,000. We provide health care coverage to current and past directors who are not eligible for coverage under another group health care benefit program or Medicare. Non-employee directors also receive grants of non-qualified stock options under the UnitedHealth Group Incorporated 2002 Stock Incentive Plan (the “Stock Incentive Plan”). Under the Stock Incentive Plan (and terms approved by the Compensation and Human Resources Committee with respect to non-employee director grants made pursuant to the Stock Incentive Plan), our non-employee directors receive three types of option grants: (1) initial one-time grants of non-qualified stock options to purchase 36,000 shares of our common stock; (2) quarterly grants of non-qualified stock options to purchase 5,000 shares of our common stock; and (3) conversion grants made pursuant to an election by a director to convert annual retainer and meeting attendance fees into options to purchase our common stock. The initial grants are made automatically on the date the eligible director is first elected to the Board of Directors and become exercisable over the following three years at the rate of 12,000 shares per year. The quarterly grants are made automatically on the first business day of each fiscal quarter and become exercisable immediately upon grant. The conversion grants are made on the day of each regularly scheduled Board meeting and become exercisable immediately upon grant. The number of shares covered by a conversion option will equal four times the amount of the retainer and meeting fees foregone, divided by the fair market value of one share of our common stock on the date of grant.
According to the proxy, Shalala had received options for 30,000 shares of stock by 2005.
Fritz Mondale was another, at least when this story started to percolate. I was hopeful it would turn out McGuire was a big Democrat donor, but never saw anything to indicate it.
I guess that explains why the Minnesota AG isn’t on this (minn. corp. but connected to Mondale)
You’re right, it looks all (R) to me (unfortunately, surprisingly)
McGuire, William
Wayzata, MN 55391
United Health Care/Executive BACHMANN, MICHELE M (R)
House (MN 06)
BACHMANN FOR CONGRESS $2,100
general 10/09/06
McGuire, William W
Minnetonka, MN 55343
UnitedHealth Group Inc./President C
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INCORPORATED PAC (UNITED FOR HEALTH) $5,000
primary 09/25/06
MCGUIRE, WILLIAM
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITED HEALTH CARE/EXECUTIVE KEAN, THOMAS H JR (R)
Senate - NJ
TOM KEAN FOR US SENATE INC $2,000
primary 05/05/06
MCGUIRE, WILLIAM MR
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITED HEALTH GROUP/CHAIRMAN MCCONNELL, MITCH (R)
Senate - KY
MCCONNELL SENATE COMMITTEE ‘08 $1,000
primary 05/05/06
MCGUIRE, WILLIAM
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITED HEALTHCARE/CEO KENNEDY, MARK RAYMOND (R)
Senate - MN
MARK KENNEDY 06 $2,100
primary 12/09/05
MCGUIRE, WILLIAM
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITED HEALTHCARE/CEO KENNEDY, MARK RAYMOND (R)
Senate - MN
MARK KENNEDY 06 $2,100
general 12/09/05
McGuire, William W
Minnetonka, MN 55343
UnitedHealth Group Inc./President C
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP INCORPORATED PAC (UNITED FOR HEALTH) $5,000
primary 09/12/05
MCGUIRE, WILLIAM
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP COLEMAN, NORM (R)
Senate - MN
COLEMAN FOR SENATE 08 $-1,900
primary 05/12/05
MCGUIRE, WILLIAM
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP COLEMAN, NORM (R)
Senate - MN
COLEMAN FOR SENATE 08 $1,900
general 05/12/05
MCGUIRE, WILLIAM
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITEDHEALTH GROUP COLEMAN, NORM (R)
Senate - MN
COLEMAN FOR SENATE 08 $4,000
primary 05/04/05
McGuire, William
Wayzata, MN 55391
United Health Care
REPUBLICAN FEDERAL COMMITTEE OF PENNSYLVANIA (R) $937
primary 11/05/04
Mc Guire, William
Wayzata, MN 55391
United Health Care/Executive
REPUBLICAN PARTY OF IOWA (R) $-312
primary 10/25/04
MC GUIRE, WILLIAM W DR.
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITED HEALTH GROUP/EXECUTIVE WOHLGEMUTH, ARLENE MRS (R)
House (TX 17)
2004 JOINT CANDIDATE COMMITTEE II $3,750
primary 10/20/04
MC GUIRE, WILLIAM W DR.
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITED HEALTH GROUP BUSH, GEORGE W (R)
President
BUSH-CHENEY ‘04 COMPLIANCE COMMITTEE INC. $2,000
general 10/20/04
MC GUIRE, WILLIAM MR.
WAYZATA, MN 55391
UNITED HEALTH CARE/EXECUTIVE
2004 JOINT STATE VICTORY COMMITTEE (R) $-7,500
primary 09/22/04
MC GUIRE, WILLIAM MR.
WAYZATA, MN 55391
2004 JOINT STATE VICTORY COMMITTEE (R)
it’s amazing how insatiable greed is, I muse, as contemplate the ice cream in the freezer.
William McGuire is the medical doctor who made a conscious decision to let Patricia Rigney and hundreds of others like her die so that he could have a second yacht to water-ski behind. Pray for him because it is a fact that the way things are now, he’s going to go to hell forever when he dies. I would strongly suggest getting away far away from him if he’s anywhere near your life; this “man” is actually a monster and he has no heart and no soul. He lost both of them a long time ago, trading them away so that he could have a few hundred million dollars instead of a hundred million. But the truth is that he has nothing.
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