Arbor Research Collaborative for Health
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 383289521
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2015–2024
- Official website data refreshed
- Sep 2026
- Forms available
- Form 990 2024, Form 990-PF 2010
- Location
- Ann Arbor, MI, USA
- Phone
- 7346654108
- Rating
- 73
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
- Sector
- Medical Research N.E.C.
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $20,353,298
- Expenses
- $19,007,337
- Assets
- $18,787,646
- Liabilities
- $2,742,310
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
21 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- Christopher Spera (President)
Highest reported compensation
- Christopher Spera (President): $740,767 total reported compensation
- Chauncey Lynch II (VP Finance): $325,683 total reported compensation
- David Dickinson (VP Information): $293,887 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2024. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To improve patient care through research that shapes medical policies and practice. and visionKen Wilson2025-01-28T15:02:39-05:00 The Arbor Research Mission Arbor Research Collaborative for Health combines excellence in science and data analysis to generate insights that drive better health outcomes. The Arbor Research Mission Arbor Research Collaborative for Health combines excellence in science and data analysis to generate insights that drive better health outcomes. Our Vision. and vision Mission and visionKen Wilson2025-01-28T15:02:39-05:00 The Arbor Research Mission.
What it reported doing in 2024
Hp3: the health policy and practice program area promotes the mission of arbor research by providing technical and scientific expertise to improve the delivery of health care and payment policies through impartial analysis with program evaluations, quality measurement, new approaches to payment models and kidney disease policy in potentially importnat implications for public policy and the quality and efficiancy of health care in the united states.
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 78% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Program spending has declined or grown slowly and revenue has declined or grown slowly.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 62
- Transparency & Controls: 85
- Accountability: 95
- Sustainability: 47
- Growth: 20
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 68.2%; rating input score 68
- Program expense ratio: 74%; rating input score 74
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
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: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 91.7%; rating input score 92; 24th 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: 6.6%; rating input score 59; 59th percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.99; rating input score 36; 36th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.15; rating input score 66; 66th percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 16.4%; rating input score 7; 7th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: -5% per year; rating input score 0; 3rd percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: -0.1% per year; rating input score 0; 8th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 0.4% per year; rating input score 100; 12th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- What they do: 1 programs and campaigns described on the official site
- Where the money goes: 68.2% of revenue deployed · 74% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 11 of 12 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
- Programs: 4 filed program accomplishments · $14.1M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $741K · 21 people listed · 5 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Highest-paid contractors: 1 contractor listed · $157K reported
- Consistency: 29 of 30 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
- Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
- Filing history: 10 filing years from 2015 to 2024
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 36 filed money-flow records
- Related organizations: 1 filed related-organization link
- 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.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
- High — Growth: Revenue growth scored 0/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 59/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 36/100.
- Moderate — Transparency & Controls: Schedule A contributions reconciliation did not reconcile in the filed values.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 7/100.