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28-07 JACKSON AVE 5TH FL
Long Island City NY 11101-3459
Long Island City NY | IRS ruling year: 2016 | EIN: 47-1442997
ACQUIRE AND ABOLISH, I.E. FORGIVE, MEDICAL DEBT OWED BY INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING POVERTY OR OTHER HARDSHIP (PLEASE SEE SCHEDULE O FOR A MORE COMPLETE DESCRIPTION OF ... (More)
ACQUIRE AND ABOLISH, I.E. FORGIVE, MEDICAL DEBT OWED BY INDIVIDUALS EXPERIENCING POVERTY OR OTHER HARDSHIP (PLEASE SEE SCHEDULE O FOR A MORE COMPLETE DESCRIPTION OF THE ORGANIZATION'S MISSION) (Less)
Great
This charity's score is 100%, earning it a Four-Star rating. If this organization aligns with your passions and values, you can give with confidence.
This overall score is calculated from multiple beacon scores: 32% Accountability & Finance, 50% Impact & Results, 7% Leadership & Adaptability, 10% Culture & Community. Learn more about our criteria and methodology.
We recognize that not all metrics and beacons equally predict a charity’s success. The percentage each beacon contributes to the organization’s overall rating depends on the number of beacons an organization has earned.
Use the tool below to select different beacons to see how the weighting shifts when only one, two, or three beacons are earned.
Rating histories are available for a growing number of rated organizations. Check back later to see if this organization has a rating history!
The IRS is significantly delayed in processing nonprofits' annual tax filings (Forms 990). As a result, the Accountability & Finance score for RIP Medical Debt is outdated and the overall rating may not be representative of its current operations. Please check with the charity directly for any questions you may have.
RIP Medical Debt has earned a 100% for the Accountability & Finance beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon provides an assessment of a charity's financial health (financial efficiency, sustainability, and trustworthiness) and its commitment to governance practices and policies.
This Accountability & Finance score represents IRS Form 990 data up until FY 2019, which is the most recent Form 990 currently available to us.
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Full Credit
Partial Credit
No Credit
Not ApplicableBoard Composition - 7/9 - 25/25 ptsBoard Composition - 7/9 - 25/25 pts
Charity Navigator looks for at least 3 board members, with more than 50% of those members identified as independent (not salaried).
The presence of an independent governing body is strongly recommended by many industry professionals to allow for full deliberation and diversity of thinking on governance and other organizational matters.
Source: IRS Form 990
Independent Audit or Financial Review - Audited - 20/20 ptsIndependent Audit or Financial Review - Audited - 20/20 pts
An Audit, Review, or Compilation provides important information about financial accountability and accuracy. Organizations are scored based on their Total Revenue Amount:
| Total Revenue Amount | Expectation to Receive Credit |
|---|---|
| $1 million or higher | Expected to complete an audit |
| $500,000 - $1 million | Expected to complete an audit, review, or compilation |
| Less than $500,000 | No expectation (removed from scoring methodology) |
Source: IRS Form 990
Conflict of Interest Policy - Listed - 3/3 ptsConflict of Interest Policy - Listed - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a conflict of interest policy on the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy protects the organization and by extension those it serves, when it is considering entering into a transaction that may benefit the private interest of an officer, director and/or key employee of the organization.
Source: IRS Form 990
Board Meeting Minutes - Documented - 3/3 ptsBoard Meeting Minutes - Documented - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks to confirm on the Form 990 that the organization has this process in place as an accountability and transparency measure.
An official record of the events that take place during a board meeting ensures that a contemporaneous document exists for future reference.
Source: IRS Form 990
Document Retention and Destruction - Listed - 3/3 ptsDocument Retention and Destruction - Listed - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a document retention and destruction policy per the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy establishes guidelines for the handling, backing up, archiving and destruction of documents. These guidelines foster good record keeping procedures that promote data integrity.
Source: IRS Form 990
Whistleblower Policy - Listed - 3/3 ptsWhistleblower Policy - Listed - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks for the existence of a whistleblower policy per the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency measure.
This policy outlines procedures for handling employee complaints, as well as a confidential way for employees to report financial or other types of mismanagement.
Source: IRS Form 990
Website - Listed - 3/3 ptsWebsite - Listed - 3/3 pts
Charity Navigator looks for a website on the Form 990 as an accountability and transparency metric.
Nonprofits act in the public trust and reporting publicly on activities is an important component.
Source: IRS Form 990
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot ApplicableLiabilities to Assets Ratio - 6.69% - 15/15 ptsLiabilities to Assets Ratio - 6.69% - 15/15 pts
The Liabilities to Assets Ratio is determined by Total Liabilities divided by Total Assets (most recent 990). This ratio is an indicator of an organization’s solvency and/or long-term sustainability.
| Liabilities to Assets Ratio | Amount of Credit Received |
|---|---|
| Less than 50% | Full Credit |
| 50% - 59.9% | Partial Credit |
| 60% or more | No Credit |
Source: IRS Form 990
Program Expense Ratio - 74.98% - 25/25 ptsProgram Expense Ratio - 74.98% - 25/25 pts
The Program Expense Ratio is determined by Program Expenses divided by Total Expense (average of most recent three 990s). This measure reflects the percent of its total expenses a charity spends on the programs and services it exists to deliver.
| Program Expense Percentage | Amount of Credit Received |
|---|---|
| 70% or higher | Full Credit |
| 60% - 69.9% | Partial Credit |
| 50% - 59.9% | Zero Points for Program Expense Score |
| Below 50% | Zero Points for Both Program Expense AND Liabilities to Assets Scores |
Source: IRS Form 990
This chart displays the trend of revenue and expenses over the past several years for this organization, as reported on their IRS Form 990.
Presented here are up to five of this organization's highest compensated employees. This compensation data includes salary, cash bonuses, and expense accounts and is displayed exactly how it is reported to the IRS. The amounts do not include nontaxable benefits, deferred compensation, or other amounts not reported on Form W-2. In some cases, these amounts may include compensation from related organizations. Read the IRS policies for compensation reporting
Source: IRS Form 990 (page 7), filing year 2019
Below are some key data points from the Exempt Organization IRS Business Master File (BMF) for this organization. Learn more about the BMF on the IRS website
Activities:
Activity data not reported from the IRS
Foundation Status:
Organization which receives a substantial part of its support from a governmental unit or the general public 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) (BMF foundation code: 15)
Affiliation:
Independent - the organization is an independent organization or an independent auxiliary (i.e., not affiliated with a National, Regional, or Geographic grouping of organizations). (BMF affiliation code: 3)
The Form 990 is a document that nonprofit organizations file with the IRS annually. We leverage finance and accountability data from it to form Encompass ratings. Click here to search for this organization's Forms 990 on the IRS website (if any are available). Simply enter the organization's name (RIP Medical Debt) or EIN (471442997) in the 'Search Term' field.
This organization was impacted by COVID-19 in a way that effected their financial health in 2020. This normally would have reduced their star rating. Due to the unprecedented nature of the pandemic, we give charities such as this one the opportunity to share the story of COVID's impact on them, and doing this pauses our revision of their rating. Charities may submit their own pandemic responses through their nonprofit portal.
RIP Medical Debt reported being impacted by COVID-19 in the following ways:
Program Delivery
How COVID-19 impacted the organization's operations financially:
At the beginning of the pandemic, we created the Helping COVID Heroes Fund. We developed this fund to help the COVID frontline workers who were battling both a deadly virus as well as debilitating medical debt. This initiative resonated with donors because of the spotlight the COVID-19 pandemic placed on the state of healthcare in our country and made 2020 our biggest year to date for our ability to fulfill our mission of abolishing medical debt for the most people possible.
How COVID-19 impacted the organization's delivery of programs:
We closed our physical office in the spring of 2020 and everyone in the organization has been working from home since. This resulted in quite a few office supplies and other items that were left unclaimed for a long period of time. During this transitional period we had to learn how to complete all of these tasks that we once did in the office, but now from our homes without the same capacity or tools. Many within our organization were already working from home before the beginning of the pandemic and as such we were already doing much of our work from home. As a result, working from home did not create delays for our fundraising or programmatic efforts. We were still able to fulfill our mission and abolish medical debt for thousands of people throughout the nation.
How this organization adapted to changing conditions caused by COVID-19:
Every year we host a summit on the subject of medical debt in our country. In years past these summits have taken place over multiple days in person. We gather experts from across the healthcare industry and have them share their insights and expertise with each other as well as the attendees. This past year’s summit was moved online over the course of two days. Over the internet we were able to reach an even larger audience than if we were to an in-person event, while still delivering instructive and enlightening conversations between leaders in the field. Since we are not currently working out of one centralized office, we have implemented monthly, unstructured Virtual Coffee Breaks for any employees who are free to spend time chatting with one another, catch up and devote a little bit of their day to not work and instead relax. It has become a great way for us as an organization to connect with each other from across the country and still feel connected in a meaningful way.
Innovations the organization intends to continue permanently after the pandemic:
We plan on keeping our annual summits virtual for the foreseeable future because we can reach a larger audience in the digital space, while still giving our attendees a robust and fulfilling experience learning from our expert panels. Additionally, with the incredible success of our Helping COVID Heroes Fund we are looking at other ways to target groups of individuals that fall outside of our standard method of geographic area.
RIP Medical Debt has earned a 100% for the Impact & Results beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon estimates the actual impact a charity has on the lives of those it serves, and determines whether it is making good use of donor resources to achieve that impact.
Learn more
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot Applicable
Program
Medical Debt Abolishment
Activities
The nonprofit provides financial assistance to patients with medical conditions.
Program Type
Financial Assistance for Patients with Medical Conditions
Beneficiaries Served
Program Geography
Time Period of Data
1/1/20 to 12/31/20
Outcomes: Changes in the lives of those served by a nonprofit. They can be caused by the nonprofit.
Costs: The money spent by a nonprofit and its partners and beneficiaries.
Impact: Outcome caused by a nonprofit relative to its cost.
Cost-effectiveness: A judgment as to whether the cost was a good use of resources to cause the outcome.
Outcome Metric
Increase in income for a patient with medical conditions
Outcome Data Source
Ratings are based on data the nonprofit itself collects on its work. We use the most recent year with sufficient data. Typically, this data allows us to calculate direct changes in participants' lives, such as increased income.
Outcome data collected during the program. The nonprofit submitted data on the dollar value of all financial assistance provided to patients, which we use to calculate the additional income received.
Method for Attributing Outcomes
We don't know if the observed changes were caused by the nonprofit's program or something else happening at the same time (e.g., a participant got a raise). To determine causation, we take the outcomes we observe and subtract an estimate of the outcomes that would have happened even without the program (i.e., counterfactual outcomes).
We estimate the dollar amount of financial assistance attributable to the nonprofit by comparing the financial assistance given by the nonprofit to the financial assistance that would have been provided in the absence of the nonprofit (the “counterfactual”). In this case, we estimate the counterfactual to be zero based on two assumptions. First, we assume there is functionally no upper limit to the amount of cash transfers that continue to be valuable to patients as they are far from reaching the point of diminishing marginal returns, such that aid provided by one nonprofit does not displace aid provided by another. Second, we assume that nonprofits work independently and do not coordinate the provision of aid to the same patient. As a result, all aid provided by the nonprofit to patients with medical conditions can be directly attributable to the nonprofit.
Cost Data Source
After estimating the program's outcomes, we need to determine how much it cost to achieve those outcomes. All monetary costs are counted, whether they are borne by a nonprofit service deliverer or by the nonprofit’s public and private partners.
Program cost data reported by the nonprofit. Partner and beneficiary costs reported by the nonprofit or estimated by Charity Navigator.
Cost Calculation
$9,842,520 program costs + $0 partner costs + $0 beneficiary costs = $9,842,520 total costs
We calculate impact, defined as the change in outcomes attributable to a program divided by the cost to achieve those outcomes.
Impact Calculation
$9,842,520 total costs / $1,736,659,044 of financial assistance provided = roughly $10 provides $2,400 in financial assistance to a patient.
Benchmark for Rating
Impact & Results scores of financial assistance to patients programs are based on income generated relative to cost. Programs receive an Impact & Results score of 100 if they increase income for a recipient by more than $1.50 for every $1 spent and a score of 80 if income increases by more than $0.85 for every $1 spent. If a nonprofit reports impact but doesn't meet the benchmark for cost-effectiveness, it earns a score of 65.
Determination
Highly cost-effective
RIP Medical Debt reported its three largest programs on its FY 2019 Form 990 as:
Spent in most recent FY
Percent of program expenses
MEDICAL DEBT RELIEF: LOCATE, ACQUIRE, AND ABOLISH, I.E. FORGIVE, MEDICAL DEBT FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING POVERTY, GENERALLY DEFINED AS EARNING 200% OR LESS THAN THE FEDERAL POVERTY LEVEL, OR ... (More)
MEDICAL DEBT RELIEF: LOCATE, ACQUIRE, AND ABOLISH, I.E. FORGIVE, MEDICAL DEBT FOR INDIVIDUALS WHO ARE EXPERIENCING POVERTY, GENERALLY DEFINED AS EARNING 200% OR LESS THAN THE FEDERAL POVERTY LEVEL, OR WHO ARE EXPERIENCING HARDSHIPS THAT MAKE PAYING OFF THE DEBT DIFFICULT OR IMPOSSIBLE. EXAMPLES OF HARDSHIPS INCLUDE EXCESSIVE MEDICAL DEBT (I.E. OUT OF POCKET MEDICAL EXPENSES AMOUNTING TO MORE THAN 5% OF GROSS INCOME), EXCESSIVE NON-MEDICAL DEBT, JOB LOSS, NUMEROUS OR SICK DEPENDENTS, ETC. (Less)
Spent in most recent FY
Percent of program expenses
MEDICAL DEBT RESEARCH: ACQUIRE AND ABOLISH MEDICAL DEBT IN CONNECTION WITH RESEARCH CONDUCTED BY MAJOR UNIVERSITIES INTO THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL EFFECTS OF MEDICAL DEBT.
Spent in most recent FY
Percent of program expenses
EDUCATION & OUTREACH: CONDUCT CONFERENCES AND PUBLISH WEBSITES, BOOKS, AND ARTICLES TO RAISE PUBLIC AWARENESS OF THE ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL EFFECTS OF MEDICAL DEBT.
RIP Medical Debt has earned a 95% for the Culture & Community beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon provides an assessment of the organization's culture and connectedness to the community it serves.
Learn more
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot ApplicableConstituent Feedback - Data Available - 100/100 ptsConstituent Feedback - Data Available - 100/100 pts
30% of beacon score
This organization reported that it is collecting feedback from the constituents and/or communities it serves. Charity Navigator believes nonprofit organizations that engage in inclusive practices, such as collecting feedback from the people and communities they serve, may be more effective.
Who are the people you serve with your mission? Describe briefly.
The beneficiaries we serve are any individuals who fit one the three following criteria. • Individuals who make less than 2 times the federal poverty level • Individuals with financial hardship - a debt that that is 5% or more of their annual income • Individuals who are insolvent (debts greater to their assets)
How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
Suggestion box/email, Other means
How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve
With whom does your organization share the feedback you got from the people you serve?
Our staff, Our board, Our funders
How has asking for feedback from the people you serve changed your relationship with them or shifted power - over decisions, resources, rules or in other ways - to them?
Asking for and getting feedback from our beneficiaries has helped us identify who the individuals are that we are serving. The inherent hurdles of our mission means that when we are purchasing and abolishing medical debt for those we serve we often don't know anything about them other than their geographic location. Getting feeback from those we serve is an important way for us in the organization to get to know these individuals better and in doing so be better informed going forward when making programatic decisions. Decisions informed by this feedback can include sourcing medical debt from underserved areas across the country or buying debt from hospitals to create a more impactful change on the lives of the people we serve and their families.
What challenges does your organization face in collecting feedback from the people you serve?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback
Briefly describe a recent change that your organization made in response to feedback from the people you serve.
As part of our program we send letters to beneficiaries to inform them that their medical bill has been abolished and they no longer owe any money. In the past we would rarely hear back from these beneficiaries and increasing response rates was major priority. With feedback from the beneficiaries we did hear from we altered some of the language and design in these letters and since this change we have seen a marked improvement in response rates from the people we serve. In the last year we have added a new Program Manager, focused solely on beneficiary services. The scope of this role is to interview beneficiares, collect their stories and feeback in order to create a more equitable and reciprocal process.
Equity Practices - Data Available - 93/100 ptsEquity Practices - Data Available - 93/100 pts
70% of beacon score
This organization's score of 93 is a passing score. The organization reported that it is implementing 8 Equity Practices. Charity Navigator believes nonprofit organizations implementing effective equity policies and practices can enhance a nonprofit's decision-making, staff motivation, innovation, and effectiveness.
Equity Practices (4/7) | |
|---|---|
We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race. | |
We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and/or portfolios. | |
We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization/'s programs, portfolios, and the populations served. | |
We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support. | |
We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders. | |
We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured | |
We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization. | |
Equity Policies and Procedures (4/7) | |
|---|---|
We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity. | |
We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions. | |
We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization. | |
We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board. | |
We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability. | |
We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team. | |
We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization. | |
RIP Medical Debt has earned a 100% for the Leadership & Adaptability beacon. See the metrics below for more information.
This beacon provides an assessment of the organization's leadership capacity, strategic thinking and planning, and ability to innovate or respond to changes in constituent demand/need or other relevant social and economic conditions to achieve the organization's mission.
Learn more
Full CreditPartial CreditNo CreditNot ApplicableMission - 10/10 ptsMission - 10/10 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking through articulating the organization's mission
Medical debt is a uniquely American injustice. It prevents millions from achieving financial stability and subjects them to emotional anguish. Our mission is to end medical debt
Vision - 10/10 ptsVision - 10/10 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking through articulating the organization’s vision.
We strive to be a source of justice in an unjust healthcare finance system: Our unique and highly leveraged debt abolishment model combines the generosity of donors with debt industry expertise to produce a high volume of debt relief return, mitigating significant financial and mental distress for millions of people. A unique solution for patient-centered healthcare providers: By partnering with us, health care systems can strengthen individuals and communities by relieving dormant, uncollectible, and damaging bad debts and can identify opportunities to refine their financial assistance programs to better serve their communities. A moral force for systemic change: Our work brings attention to the range of negative impacts of medical debt and a deeper understanding of its causes. These efforts support progress toward a more compassionate, transparent, equitable and affordable healthcare system.
Source: Nonprofit submitted responses
Goals - 20/20 ptsGoals - 20/20 pts
The nonprofit organization presents evidence of strategic thinking and goal setting through sharing their most important strategic goals.
Goal One: Grow our operations by over 50% in the coming year.
Goal Type: Grow, expand, scale or increase access to the existing programs and services.
Goal Two: Develop strategic approach to releasing research findings on the impact of medical debt on economic, mental, and physical wellbeing to capture national audience and bring attention to RIP’s efforts
Goal Type: This goal reflects our commitment to further our advocacy work for our organization and or cause area.
Goal Three: Update and improve cyber security and HIPPA compliance policies and procedures. Develop additional policies and procedures to guide decisions and support workflow
Goal Type: Invest in the capacity of our organization (financial, management, technical, etc.).
Leadership Development - 15/15 ptsLeadership Development - 15/15 pts
The nonprofit provides evidence of investment in leadership development
Earlier this year we took an organization-wide DiSC training and assesment workshop that detalied our personality, work styles, and its impact on workplace culture. This helped us better understand our leadership styles in order to implement what we learned into our work going forward.
Mobilizing for Mission - 15/15 ptsMobilizing for Mission - 15/15 pts
The nonprofit provides evidence of leadership through focusing externally and mobilizing resources for the mission.
Strategic Partnerships
Thought Leadership
Raising Awareness
Every year we host a medical debt summit that gathers experts from the healthcare industry to speak with one another about the problem that is medical debt and possible solutions to this national problem going forward. Additionally we use our social media channels to highlight news stories that discuss the debilitating effects of medical debt and how we at RIP Medical Debt are trying to help stop it.
Adaptability Story - 30/30 ptsAdaptability Story - 30/30 pts
The nonprofit has an opportunity to tell the story of how the organization adapted to tremendous external changes in the last year.
In order to help combat the unprecedented effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic we set up the Helping COVID Heroes fund last spring. This fund was started as a way to alleviate the burden of medical debt for the frontline workers during the most difficult moments of the pandemic. With the help of our data partners we were able to filter through the job codes and find healthcare professionals as well as other frontline workers with medical debt. Along with help of our donors we were able to abolish forty-six million dollars of medical debt for over 36,000 beneficiaries across the country.
Impact & Results
Accountability & Finance
Culture & Community
Leadership & Adaptability
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