Sanford Health CEO salary and executive pay
Sanford Health paid its CEO, Bill Gassen, $4,999,360 for the fiscal year ending December 2024. That is up $1,738,328 (53.3%) from the fiscal year ending December 2023. Total revenue on that return was $6,110,580,553, up 6.5% from $5,738,655,914 for the fiscal year ending December 2023. Sanford Health ranks 63rd of 229 hospital systems on this site by CEO pay. All of Bill Gassen's reportable pay, $4,414,119, came from related organizations (column E). Sanford Health has 3 Form 990 returns on record, for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2024.
Last updated from IRS e-file data. EIN 45-3791176, Sioux Falls, SD.
CEO, fiscal year ending December 2024
$4,999,360
Also listed with a chief executive title on this filing: Paul Hanson (PRESIDENT & CEO, SIOUX FALLS), $1,644,815; Tiffany Lawrence (PRESIDENT & CEO, FARGO), $1,605,697; Todd Schaffer (PRESIDENT & CEO, BISMARCK), $1,351,976; Karla Eischens (PRESIDENT & CEO, BEMIDJI), $837,278.
- Total revenue
- $6,110,580,553
- CEO pay vs. peers
- Higher than 20%
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending December 2024, IRS object ID 202523179349302617.View the filing
Peers: the 183 other hospital systems on this site. Ranked 146th of 184 by top pay as a share of revenue. Pay is 0.08% of revenue, our calculation from the same return. Revenue is Part I, line 12; peers are compared on their latest full-year returns.
This is a group return: one Form 990 filed for a group of affiliated organizations together.
Highest-paid people on the latest return
On the latest return, 17 people were paid more than $500,000, 15 of them more than $1 million.
| Name and title | Total |
|---|---|
| Bill Gassen CEO TRUSTEE, PRESIDENT & CEO | $4,999,360 |
| William Brunner MDPHYSICIAN | $3,333,557 |
| Adam Stys MDPHYSICIAN | $3,303,293 |
| Matt HocksEVP, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER | $3,074,978 |
| Tomasz Stys MDPHYSICIAN | $2,960,002 |
Also paid on the latest return: Eric Belanger MD (PHYSICIAN), $2,927,042; Alexander Drofa MD (PHYSICIAN), $2,884,132; Scott Wooten (EVP, CFO (END 4/24)), $2,576,428; Jennifer Grennan (EVP, CHIEF ADMIN OFFICER), $2,199,462; Michael Lebeau MD (SVP, HEALTH SVC OPERATIONS), $2,034,552; Paul Hanson (PRESIDENT & CEO, SIOUX FALLS), $1,644,815; Tiffany Lawrence (PRESIDENT & CEO, FARGO), $1,605,697; Todd Schaffer (PRESIDENT & CEO, BISMARCK), $1,351,976; Nick Olson (EVP, CFO (BEG 4/24)), $1,171,262; Susan Jarvis (FORMER PRESIDENT & CEO, BEMIDJI), $1,066,941; Bill Marlette (INTERIM, EVP, CFO (END 1/24)), $894,576; Karla Eischens (PRESIDENT & CEO, BEMIDJI), $837,278; Andy North (TRUSTEE, SECRETARY, INDEP CONTRACTOR), $379,383; Michelle Bruhn (FORMER EVP, CFO & TREASURER), $293,725; Bryan Nermoe (FORMER PRESIDENT & CEO, FARGO), $252,724; and 11 more.
CEO pay by year
Each row is the CEO on that year's return.
| Fiscal year ending | Name and title | Total | Revenue | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 2024 | Bill Gassen CEO TRUSTEE, PRESIDENT & CEO | $4,999,360 | $6,110,580,553 | Filing |
| Dec 2023 | Bill Gassen CEO TRUSTEE, PRESIDENT & CEO | $3,261,032 | $5,738,655,914 | Filing |
| Dec 2022 | Bill Gassen III CEO TRUSTEE, PRESIDENT & CEO | $3,063,165 | $5,321,937,014 | Filing |
How this pay was reported
The parts of each total, as reported on the return for the fiscal year ending December 2024.
Source: Form 990, fiscal year ending December 2024, IRS object ID 202523179349302617.View the filing
| Part VII | Schedule J | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name and title | From org | Related | Other | Base | Bonus | Other | Deferred | Nontaxable | Total |
| Bill GassenTRUSTEE, PRESIDENT & CEO | $0 | $4,414,119 | $585,241 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Schedule J, from related orgs | $2,334,458 | $1,624,395 | $455,266 | $584,349 | $892 | $4,999,360 | |||
| William Brunner MDPHYSICIAN | $3,286,993 | $0 | $46,564 | $3,282,364 | $0 | $4,629 | $16,627 | $29,937 | $3,333,557 |
| Schedule J, from related orgs | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||
| Adam Stys MDPHYSICIAN | $3,250,190 | $0 | $53,103 | $2,941,668 | $0 | $308,522 | $17,250 | $35,853 | $3,303,293 |
| Schedule J, from related orgs | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||
| Matt HocksEVP, CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER | $0 | $2,798,445 | $276,533 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Schedule J, from related orgs | $1,499,992 | $1,059,337 | $239,116 | $240,957 | $35,576 | $3,074,978 | |||
| Tomasz Stys MDPHYSICIAN | $2,911,937 | $0 | $48,065 | $2,748,910 | $0 | $163,027 | $17,250 | $30,815 | $2,960,002 |
| Schedule J, from related orgs | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||
These figures come from Sanford Health's Form 990 returns, as the IRS publishes them. The methodology page explains how they're chosen. To report an error, email corrections@ceopaycheck.com.
How Sanford Health compares
Ranked 63rd of 229 hospital systems by CEO pay.
- Previous in this ranking: 62nd, Wellstar Health System, $5,069,923
- Next in this ranking: 64th, Yale New Haven Health, $4,968,969
Closest in revenue among the hospital systems on this site:
Indiana University Health$5,720,461 (CEO), fiscal year ending Dec 2024
Highmark Health (Allegheny Health Network)$9,716,380 (CEO), fiscal year ending Dec 2024
Inova Health System$6,579,451 (CEO), fiscal year ending Dec 2024
Novant Health$8,150,937 (CEO), fiscal year ending Dec 2024
Risant Health (Geisinger)$14,295,895 (CEO), fiscal year ending Dec 2024
Common questions
Bill Gassen (TRUSTEE, PRESIDENT & CEO) was paid $4,999,360 for the fiscal year ending December 2024: $0 from Sanford Health, $4,414,119 from related organizations and $585,241 in other compensation (Part VII columns D, E and F).
The CEO, Bill Gassen, was the highest-paid person on the latest return, at $4,999,360.
Sanford Health paid its CEO, Bill Gassen, $4,999,360 for the fiscal year ending December 2024. That is up $1,738,328 (53.3%) from the fiscal year ending December 2023. The earliest return on record is for the fiscal year ending December 2022, when the CEO was Bill Gassen III, paid $3,063,165. By fiscal year end: December 2022, $3,063,165 (Bill Gassen III); December 2023, $3,261,032; December 2024, $4,999,360.
Sanford Health's return for the fiscal year ending December 2024 reports total expenses of $5,829,138,669 and total revenue of $6,110,580,553 (Part I, lines 18 and 12), so revenue exceeded expenses by $281,441,884. Expenses were $5,373,525,192 for the fiscal year ending December 2023, so they rose 8.5%. The CEO's pay of $4,999,360 equals 0.09% of expenses, our calculation.
From the 3 Form 990 returns Sanford Health filed with the IRS for fiscal years ending 2022 to 2024. The latest full-year return was filed on November 13, 2025. Schedule J of the fiscal year ending December 2024 return breaks down pay for all 5 people in the pay breakdown above.