(H/t Advance Indiana) Evan Bayh’s wife has enriched the family for years by serving on corporate boards. As Gary Welsh points out, it seems unlikely at best that she would have been such a popular board member if her husband wasn’t Senator Bayh.
The Indianapolis Star points out a direct and probably irreconcilable conflict on one of the more critical matters that will be coming before the United States Senate.
Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh’s vote could prove critical as Congress debates health-care reform later this year. Yet, Bayh has a clear personal interest in the financial stability of one of the key players in that debate — Indianapolis-based WellPoint, the nation’s largest commercial health insurer.
Bayh’s ties to WellPoint could hardly be more direct for a sitting senator. His wife, Susan, as a member of the company’s board of directors, earned compensation valued at $327,000 from WellPoint last year.
The Bayhs deny that a little thing like $327k could cause a conflict, apparently because the folks at Wellpoint don’t speak directly to the Senator. I like to think I’m a high-minded individual, but three hundred and twenty seven thousand non-verbal cues might tend to influence my thinking a little bit. And, if we get to the appearance of impropriety standard, Bayh basically has to avoid ever doing anything beneficial for the insurance industry.
As of this year, drug companies stopped giving physicians ink pens with drug names on them, because big pharma doesn’t want to appear to be trying to unduly influence our prescribing habits.
If a 99 cent pen could influence me, I wonder what a third of a million dollars would do?
I’m reminded, as I am frequently when pondering Indiana’s “Democratic” Senator, of the story the critic John Simon tells about the New York Film Critics Circle.
Someone had proposed the LA Times’ semi-hacktacular Charles Champlin for membership, and as the matter was being considered one of Champlin’s supporters said, “To his credit, he’s never been bought-off by the movie industry.”
“Why would they pay for what they can have for free?” Simon replied.
A concern that involves many large companies: why do directors receive such high compensation (not including a very nice package of other perks)? Do these people do much more than have their names on a list? If advice and oversight is what is needed/wanted then are there not very qualified people who would do an excellent job for a whole lot less cost?
Granted I have never been asked to be on a major board such as these. Just spent a lot of time on those boards that do not pay anything and take a lot of time, but felt an obligation to seek to have meaningful input.
Perhaps in the world of excessive compensation this is another area that hopefully the “free enterprise system” can find a means of reality adjustment.
I was going to ask the same thing, Jack. I think being a director is a bit more involved that that, but here’s a link to Susan Bayh’s directorships. I’m sure it takes some time, but even if all of her service on these boards adds up to full-time work, it seems clear that Anthem is paying her $327,000 for a very part-time obligation. Pretty astounding, but incredibly common.