Miles White - 2009 CEO Pay

Total Compensation: $26.2 million

Details: Always one of the top-paid executives on our list, Miles White's 2009 compensation totaled $26.2 million--a 7 percent drop from his $28.3 million haul in 2008.

White's base salary grew by about 3 percent to $1.85 million, and his stock awards jumped up 66 percent to almost $12.5 million. The value of his pension and deferred compensation grew to $4.29 million. The reduction came in the form of a 71 percent drop in stock options. Since 2007, White's stock options have dropped from over $14 million to about $3 million. His incentive plan cash also dropped slightly, to $3.9 million from $4.2 million. White's pay also included over $709,000 in other compensation.

According to Barron's list of the world's 30 best chief executives, Abbott gets what it pays for in Miles White. The executive made the magazine's list due to his company's broad diversification in drugs, devices and consumer products.

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