Nonprofit Insurer Raises Rates Despite $9.9 Billion Surplus
The Houston Chronicle reports on the finances of Health Care Service Corp., the nation’s largest customer-owned insurer, which is raising premiums and eliminating some coverage plans while maintaining a reserve fund one health-policy expert called “unusually aggressive.”
Charity That Decorates Military Graves Relies on Founders’ Firm
Wreaths Across America, a nonprofit that each holiday season places millions of dollars’ worth of decorations at Arlington National Cemetery and other burial sites, relies exclusively for supplies on a company owned by its founders, The Wall Street Journal writes.
Hedge-Fund Mogul Works to Make Companies More ‘Just’
The New York Times looks at finance billionaire Paul Tudor Jones’s nonprofit Just Capital, which aims to reduce income inequality and address other social problems by ranking big corporations on social responsibility.
Court Finds Wash. Hospital Violated Charity Care Law
A Yakima County, Wash., judge ruled that a regional medical center breached state law by demanding payment from indigent patients before providing treatment, the Yakima Herald reports.
Audit Cites Colo. Disability Group for ‘Shameful’ Misspending
Denver officials released an audit Thursday accusing Rocky Mountain Human Services, a nonprofit contractor serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, of misusing some $1.8 million in taxpayer funds, The Denver Post and The Denver Channel report.
Budget Deal Would Block IRS From Changing Nonprofit Politicking Rules
The agreement struck this week by congressional leaders includes a temporary ban on the Internal Revenue Service using federal funds to revise rules on political spending by tax-exempt “social welfare” groups, reports The Washington Post.
Former Field Museum Worker Charged in Alleged $900,000 Theft
A woman who worked for nearly 11 years at the Chicago natural-history museum was charged with embezzlement Tuesday, days after the Field revealed a more than $900,000 fund diversion, the Chicago Sun-Times and Crain’s Chicago Business write.
Ford Foundation to ‘Reimagine’ N.Y. Building in Renovation
Foundation President Darren Walker tells The New York Times that the fund will get rid of its palatial presidential suite and “reimagine the building as a public-service facility.”
AmazonSmile Program Leaves Some Nonprofits Frowning
The online shopping site’s gigantic customer base is tantalizing for charities, but many say tiny financial returns and the company’s refusal to share data make it a dubious effort.
By Eden Stiffman
Senior Editor
Field Museum Worker Allegedly Stole $900,000 in Member Fees
Federal authorities are investigating the alleged theft by a former employee of the Chicago natural-history museum who collected money for memberships at the door, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Hedge Fund Closes Deal to Run Calif. Catholic Hospital Group
Daughters of Charity Health System announced Monday that it has finalized a $260 million investment agreement that will see a New York hedge fund take over management of its six nonprofit hospitals in the San Francisco Bay and Los Angeles areas, reports the San Jose Mercury News.
For-Profit Fundraisers Keep 46% of Calif. Donations, Says Report
New figures from the California attorney general’s office show that solicitation firms pocketed nearly half of the money they raised on behalf of nonprofits last year, the Orange County Register reports.
Report Blasts British Charities on Mission Spending
Nearly one in five major British nonprofits spends less than half of its annual fundraising take on direct charitable activities, according to new research cited by The Telegraph.
Year-End at Direct-Mail Companies Show Paper Isn’t Passé Yet
For many of the companies’ clients, mail solicitations drive the bulk of their annual revenue.
By Megan O’Neil
Contributor
Pay-for-Success Financing: Anatomy of a Deal
In the second of three video briefings, experts share advice on pay-for-success financing.
Red Cross Cost-Cutting Backfired, Says Report
By closing local chapters and alienating longtime volunteers, executives at the American Red Cross have hampered the nonprofit’s ability to deliver emergency services, according to ProPublica.
By Rebecca Koenig
Contributor