NEW YORK—George Paz, head of pharmacy-benefits manager Express Scripts Inc., received compensation worth $13.8 million in 2008, according to an Associated Press analysis of a regulatory filing -- a 19 percent increase from 2007.

Paz, who is Express Scripts' president, chief executive and chairman, received a salary of about $942,000 and $2.5 million in performance-based cash bonuses. His salary rose 7 percent for the year, and his bonuses increased by 15 percent. The value of Paz's stock and options on the dates they were granted rose 21 percent, to $10.2 million from $8.4 million.

The exercise price for the options is $63.84, but Express Scripts shares finished at $60.26 on Thursday. The stock has not traded at $63.84 or higher since Nov. 5.

Shares of the St. Louis company fell almost 25 percent in 2008. However its annual profit grew 37 percent. Express Scripts is the nation's third largest pharmacy-benefits manager, but is poised to become the second-largest after agreeing to buy part of WellPoint Inc.

The value of Paz's other compensation, including a company credit contribution and a contribution to his 401(k), grew 70 percent, to about $195,000.

His compensation was valued at $11.6 million in 2007. Paz, who is 53 years old, joined Express Scripts in 1998, and became president in 2003.

The Associated Press formula is designed to isolate the value the company's board placed on the executive's total compensation package during the last fiscal year. It includes salary, bonus, performance-related bonuses, perks, above-market returns on deferred compensation and the estimated value of stock options and awards granted during the year. The calculations don't include changes in the present value of pension benefits, and they sometimes differ from the totals companies list in the summary compensation table of proxy statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which reflect the size of the accounting charge taken for the executive's compensation in the previous fiscal year.

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