Massachusetts Eye and Ear

Overview

Mission

In conjunction with Harvard Medical School, Mass. Eye and Ear is committed to the education of future health care professionals, as well as the education of the public concerning the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of the diseases in its specialties and concerning the rehabilitation of patients handicapped by these diseases. In order to provide the highest quality of contemporary care and even better care in the future, Mass. Eye and Ear conducts laboratory and clinical research in its areas of specialty. Mass. Eye and Ear recognizes its obligation to serve as a source of excellence in patient care, teaching, and research in Massachusetts, the United States, and the world.

What it reported doing in 2017

See schedule o

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 82% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
Distribution model
Direct operator. The nonprofit carried out 91% of its reported program work directly.

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
042103591
IRS 990 coverage
2009–2017
Website reviewed
Jun 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2017
Headquarters
Boston, MA, USA
Rating
71
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Hospitals

Official website

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The verdict

SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. The required major-donor schedule is missing or incomplete and expenses are high relative to revenue.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 74
  • Transparency & Controls: 62
  • Accountability: 78
  • Sustainability: 48
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 75.2%; rating input score 75
  • Program expense ratio: 76.1%; rating input score 76
  • Fundraising efficiency: $17.38 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 71st percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 4 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 67
  • Foreign activity oversight: 2 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 25
  • Grant itemization coverage: 100%; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: No; rating input score 0
  • Related-party transparency: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Public monitoring controls: 0 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 0
  • Public policy transparency: 1 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 14
  • Public financial transparency: 0 of 5 controls in place; rating input score 0
  • Impact reporting controls: 0 of 7 controls in place; rating input score 0
  • Public relationship transparency: No; rating input score 0

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 73.7%; rating input score 74; 24th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
  • Public governance controls: 1 of 4 controls in place; rating input score 25
  • Zakat policy transparency: Limited

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 2.5%; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Operating reserve ratio: 1.79; rating input score 64; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.94; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 2.3%; rating input score 47; 47th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 7% per year; rating input score 100; 65th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 5.3% per year; rating input score 100; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 10% per year; rating input score 100; 77th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site
  • Where the money goes: 75.2% of revenue deployed · 76.1% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 14 of 19 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 3 filed program accomplishments · $222.2M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $1.4M · 39 people listed · 4 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Consistency: 41 of 41 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 12 filed schedules · includes major donors, foreign activity, grants, executive pay, and related organizations
  • Filing history: 9 annual filings from 2009 to 2017
  • Money network: 46 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 44 filed related-organization links