Florida’s new Surgeon General, Dr. Joseph Ladapo, got a pay raise when he accepted the job.Jobs, actually.
Ladapo will make$437,000 a year.Here's how that breaks down.
The University of FloridaCollege of Medicine announced it would pay Ladapo a base salary per year of $262,000 as a professor of general internal medicine.
According to theemployee interchange contract between UF and the Department of Health for his services, provided under a public records request filed by the USA TODAY Network–Florida,the DOH is contributing $150,000 a year to UF towardthat salary.
The state also is paying an additional $100,000 a year directly toLadapo, DOH spokeswoman Weesam Khoury said, which makes a total of $250,000 a year the DOH is paying for him. This amount isthe most allowed for that position under raises for agency heads recently approved by the Florida Legislature.
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Andit was revealed in recently released emails, Ladapowill receive an extra $75,000that had not been previously disclosed for running a special projects group under Dr. David Nelson,senior vice president for health affairs at the University of Florida and president of UF Health.
Ladapo’s salary marks a $198,000 bump over that of his more experienced predecessor, Scott Rivkees, during his tenure.It’s also about $118,000 more than the $319,000 a year Ladapo made as a research professor at the University of California Los Angeles.
What does Ladapo do?What does Florida'ssurgeon general actually do?
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What do other Florida state employees make?
There are other state employees with employee interchange agreementsbut the amount thatDOH is paying peryear for Ladapo –with the bulk of that a contribution toward his UF salary –still puts him in the list of the top ten highest-paid Florida government employees, according to our state salary database.
(This database doesn'taccount for portions of salaries that are paid out by foundations or other private entities, so some people may be bringinghome more than this.)
Currently the highest-paid state government employee on salary, according to what has been reported by the state, would be Dr. Carolyn Drazinic, Chief of Medical Services, Department of Children and Families. She makes$326,683 a year, state records show.
If we look at the top ten salaries not counting Ladapo, four of them are officials with the Dept. of Children and Families. Five of them are Florida Supreme Court justices. And the other is Commissioner of Education Richard M. Corcoran, who receives $284,280.
What do they make? See the salaries of Florida state employees in our salary database
And they don't make as much as some of the hourly employees at the Department of Health.
Dr. Patricia J. Blanco,a pediatrician in Sarasota who is affiliated withSarasota Memorial HospitalandJohns Hopkins All Children's Hospital, among others,makes $275 an hour from the DOH, which comes out to$572,000 a year.
Brent W. Laartz, an infectious disease specialist in Safety Harbor, receives $210 an hour or$435,800 a yearfrom the DOH,
In fact, there are 22 people in the DOH who are paid more than the top highest-paid government salaried people.
2018 Database analysis:UF med faculty the highest-paid state workers
But for the real money, we have to look at state university positions.Daniel White, VP & athletic director at the University of Central Florida, has the highest annual state salary at$1,081,500.Paul H. Davis, Jr., head athletic coach at Florida International University, comes in right behind him at $1,041,863.
Dr. David R. Nelson, senior vice president for health affairs at the University of Florida and president of UF Health, brings in$1,033,946. Dr.Mark S. Bleiweis, director of the Congenital Heart Center along with multiple other positions at UF, receives $1,013,870.
Daryoush Tavanaiepour, associate professor and chair of UF's neurosurgery department, makes $998.662.
How much does Florida Governor Ron DeSantis make?
According to his most recent filing with the Florida Commission onEthics, Gov. DeSantis makes$134,181 a year.
Contributor: Jeffrey Schweers,capital bureau reporter for USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida
C. A. Bridges is a Digital Producer for the USA TODAY Network, working with several newsrooms across Florida. Local journalists work hard to keep you informed about the things you care about, and you can support them by subscribing to yourlocal news organization.Read more articles by Chris here and follow him on Twitter at @cabridges
