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WellCare Employees Offered Bonuses

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By JEROME R. STOCKFISCH, The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 8, 2007

TAMPA - WellCare Health Plans, the provider of managed care services for the government that had its local headquarters raided by federal and state officials, has adopted a retention plan to help keep key employees on board while the investigation continues.

WellCare has "not experienced negative impact" to staff, spokeswoman Amy Knapp said Friday. However, "recent events have made retention of our associates even more important for us," she said.

According to a document filed Thursday with the Securities and Exchange Commission, substantially all of the company's employees are eligible to participate in the retention program and a related severance program. A one-time bonus of 20 percent to 50 percent of an employee's base salary, depending on employment level, will be paid out on Dec. 31, 2008, for those employees staying onboard.

The program will cost $35 million, of which $2.9 million is to be booked this year.

Three of the company's top officers, chief executive Todd Farha, chief financial officer Paul Behrens and general counsel Thaddeus Bereday, are not eligible.

Agents from the FBI and other federal and state agencies raided WellCare's headquarters campus on Henderson Road on Oct. 24. The government has been tight-lipped regarding the investigation, and the company says it is cooperating.

Reporter Jerome R. Stockfisch can be reached at jstockfisch@tampatrib.com or (813) 259-8402.

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