In a wide margin, Centene shareholders have rejected a pair of proposals that took aim at executive pay, according to regulatory documents published May 15.
Both proposals were shareholder-submitted. One would have tied pay to maternal morbidity metrics. The other would have given shareholders more input on how much senior managers are paid when they leave the company.
Centene's board said in previous regulatory filings that it opposed the proposals. The board detailed existing limits on severance pay and said its policies are "consistent with market norms." The board also said data tied to prenatal and postnatal care already factors into its compensation plans.
The final vote counts confirmed preliminary results released May 10 at Centene's annual shareholders meeting.
Final votes for proposal on shareholder ratification of termination pay: 441,040,108 against, 44,697,030 for and 547,295 abstentions.
Final votes for proposal on maternal morbidity reduction metrics in executive compensation: 422,734,550 against, 59,585,452 for and 3,964,431 abstentions.
Proposals approved by shareholders:
- Re-election of 10 nominees to the board of directors for one-year terms
- An advisory vote on executive compensation
- Non-binding advisory vote on the frequency of future advisory votes on executive compensation to take place annually
- Ratification of KPMG LLP again as the company's external audit firm