American Public Health Association

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
131628688
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2024
Official website data refreshed
Aug 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2024, Form 990-T 2024
Location
Washington, DC, USA
Phone
202-777-3947
Rating
84
Verdict
STRONG
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Public Health Program (Includes General Health and Wellness Promotion Services)

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$25,697,999
Expenses
$27,684,499
Assets
$36,589,604
Liabilities
$8,170,631

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

33 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • DEANNA J WATHINGTON MD MPH FAAFP (PRESIDENT)
  • NANDI MARSHALL DRPH MPH CHES (PRESIDENT ELECT)
  • ELLA GREENE-MOTON (IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT)
  • GEORGES C BENJAMIN MD FACP (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR)

Highest reported compensation

  • GEORGES C BENJAMIN MD FACP (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR): $407,007 total reported compensation
  • KEMI A OLUWAFEMI MBA CPA (CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER): $219,120 total reported compensation
  • JAMES CARBO (CHIEF OF STAFF): $201,601 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

Improve the health of the public and achieve equity in health status.

What it reported doing in 2024

Convention - the annual exposition convened over 12,000 public health professionals representing over 80 disciplines in public health and related fields, working to improve the public's health.

Operating model

Revenue model
Mixed. Its operating money came from several sources; no one source provided a clear majority.
Distribution model
Hybrid. The nonprofit split its reported program spending across 64% for direct work, and 36% for grants.

The verdict

STRONG - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 82
  • Transparency & Controls: 82
  • Accountability: 100
  • Sustainability: 30
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 86.1%; rating input score 86
  • Program expense ratio: 77.8%; rating input score 78
  • Fundraising efficiency: $45.14 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 74; 74th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.9%; rating input score 93; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 5 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 83
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Pass
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Pass
    • Compensation survey or study: Pass
    • Board or committee approval: Pass
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: 69.1%; rating input score 69; 14th percentile among comparable filings
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 66th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 9 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 100
    • Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
    • Whistleblower policy: Pass
    • Document-retention policy: Pass
    • CEO compensation review process: Pass
    • Other executive compensation review process: Pass
    • Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
    • Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
    • Audit committee oversight: Pass
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Pass

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: -7.7%; rating input score 13; 13th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.32; rating input score 46; 46th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.22; rating input score 55; 55th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 7.3%; rating input score 34; 34th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 5.6% per year; rating input score 100; 47th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 3.5% per year; rating input score 100; 29th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.7% per year; rating input score 100; 21st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 9 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 2 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 86.1% of revenue deployed · 77.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 20 of 20 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $21.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $407K · 33 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $2.8M reported
  • Consistency: 36 of 37 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 9 filed schedules · includes major donors, grants, and executive pay
  • Filing history: 14 filing years from 2010 to 2024
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 47 filed money-flow records
  • Related organizations: 37 filed related-organization links
  • Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
  • People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.

Key Signals

Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.

  • High — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 13/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 46/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 34/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Domestic grant itemization did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 55/100.