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BBB Wise Giving Report for
Doctors Without Borders USA

BBB Wise Giving report issued August 2007.
BBB Wise Giving report expires August 2009.

Does not meet one or more standards.
This charity does not meet one or more of the 20 standards for Charity Accountability. Find out more...



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Charity Contact Information

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Web Address:
Doctors Without Borders USA
333 Seventh Avenue 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10001-5004
212-679-6800
www.doctorswithoutborders.org
also known as: Medecins Sans Frontieres USA, Inc.

BBB Wise Giving Alliance Comments

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Year, State Incorporated: 1987, New York


Affiliates: Drugs for Neglected Disease Initiative


Stated Purpose: "to deliver emergency aid to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, natural and man-made disasters, and exclusion from health care in more than 70 countries."

Evaluation Conclusions                

Doctors Without Borders USA (DWB) does not meet the following Standard for Charity Accountability:

Standard 4 : Compensated Board Members - Not more than one or 10% (whichever is greater) directly or indirectly compensated person(s) serving as voting member(s) of the board. Compensated members shall not serve as the board's chair or treasurer.

  • DWB does not meet this Standard since 2 members out of the 12 member board of directors (17%) are compensated.  The chairman is compensated directly while the treasurer is compensated indirectly.


Doctors Without Borders USA (DWB) meets the remaining 19 Standards for Charity Accountability.



Programs                

DWB reports that its volunteer doctors, nurses, logisticians, water-and-sanitation experts, administrators, and other medical and non-medical professionals depart on more than 4,700 aid missions. DWB also reports working alongside more than 16,000 locally hired staff to provide medical care. In emergencies and their aftermath, DWB provides essential health care, rehabilitates and runs hospitals and clinics, performs surgery, battles epidemics, carries out vaccination campaigns, operates feeding centers for malnourished children, and offers mental health care. Through longer-term programs, DWB treats patients with infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, sleeping sickness, and HIV/AIDS, and provides medical and psychological care to marginalized groups such as street children.

For the year ended December 31, 2006, DWB's program expenses were:

  
Emergency and medical programs 95,244,620
Program support and development 2,738,017
Public education 2,574,672
Field staff 1,102,590
Total Program Expenses:
$101,659,899



Governance                

Chief Executive : Nicolas de Torrenté, Executive Director
Compensation*: $128,646

Chair of the Board: Darin Portnoy, MD, MPH
Chair's Profession / Business Affiliation: Physician

Board Size: 12

Paid Staff Size: 70


*2005 compensation includes annual salary and, if applicable, benefit plans, expense accounts, and other allowances.



Fund Raising                

Method(s) Used:

Direct mail, telemarketing, special events, print advertisements, grant proposals, Internet appeals, planned giving, cause-related marketing, and membership appeals.
Fund raising costs were 12% of related contributions. (Related contributions, which totaled $118,341,404, are donations received as a result of fund raising activities.)



Tax Status                

This organization is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. It is eligible to receive contributions deductible as charitable donations for federal income tax purposes.



Financial                

The following information is based on DWB's audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2006:

Source of Funds  
Contributions and private grants 116,121,628
In-kind contributions (services and materials) 3,718,440
Investment income 3,328,163
Contributions - pledged 2,219,776
Seconded field staff grants 1,015,454
MSF network grants 945,932
Other revenue 101,588
Unrealized and realized gain (loss) on investments -69,406
Total Income $127,381,575






Uses of Funds as a % of Total Expenses

Use your mouse to place the cursor over the the Pie Chart to see each value
Programs: 84%  Fund Raising: 12%  Administrative: 1%  Other Expenses: 3%


Total income   $127,381,575
  Program expenses $101,659,899  
  Fund raising expenses 14,175,792  
  Administrative expenses 1,510,666  
  Other Expenses 3,706,445  
   
Total expenses   $121,052,802
 
Income in Excess of Expenses   6,328,773
Beginning net assets   78,621,412
 
Ending net assets   84,950,185
Total liabilities   4,376,516
 
Total assets   $89,326,701
 


Note: In the above financial summary, "other expenses" represents in-kind goods and services ($3,718,440) which includes international field personnel services ($3,467,064), legal services ($239,381), and computer hardware ($11,995).


An organization may change its practices at any time without notice. A copy of this report has been shared with the organization prior to publication. It is not intended to recommend or deprecate, and is furnished solely to assist you in exercising your own judgment. The name Better Business Bureau is a registered service mark of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc.

This report reflects the results of an evaluation of informational materials provided voluntarily by the organization. A copy of this report has been shared with the organization prior to publication. It is not intended to recommend or deprecate, and is furnished solely to assist you in exercising your own judgement. The name Better Business Bureau is a registered service mark of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, Inc.

This report is not to be used for fund raising or promotional purposes.

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