The Blood Center

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
720725401
IRS 990 coverage
2010–2025
Official website data refreshed
Sep 2026
Forms available
Form 990 2025
Location
New Orleans, LA, US
Phone
(504) 524-1322
Rating
76
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Blood Supply Related

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$30,535,789
Expenses
$26,179,785
Assets
$54,805,722
Liabilities
$2,629,643

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.

Leadership & pay

24 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • WILLIAM C WEALES (DIRECTOR, PRESIDENT & CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • WILLIAM C WEALES (DIRECTOR, PRESIDENT & CEO): $592,572 total reported compensation
  • CARRIE MADONA (VP OF FINANCE): $166,819 total reported compensation
  • GARY HIGGINS (VP OF ADMINISTRATION): $158,304 total reported compensation

Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.

Overview

Mission

To provide a quality supply of blood components to meet the needs of the communities served by The Blood Center, and to provide the technical support needed by the blood banking profession to achieve the highest safety and ethical standards.

What it reported doing in 2025

Other related areas included in other program services is therapeutic apheresis. Therapeutic apheresis is the process of removing abnormal or pathologic substances from a patient's blood using automated blood cell separator equipment, while returning all other blood components. Red blood cells, white blood cells, plasma, or platelets may be selectively removed, as requsted by the patient's physician. Examples would be the removal of abnormal red blood cells in a sickle cell anemia patient, leukemia cells prior to chemotherapy, plasma in patients with abnormal antibody production or platelets in patients with high counts at risk for stroke. The blood center nursing staff, under the supervision of the medical director, brings the latest mobile therapeutic apheresis technology directly to the patient's bedside.

Operating model

Revenue model
Earned-program. 89% 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 - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Program spending has declined or grown slowly and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 66
  • Transparency & Controls: 80
  • Accountability: 96
  • Sustainability: 63
  • Growth: 60

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 69.4%; rating input score 69
  • Program expense ratio: 82.4%; rating input score 82
  • Fundraising efficiency: Limited

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 92.3%; rating input score 92; 10th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
    • Compensation committee: Pass
    • Independent consultant: Missing
    • Other Form 990s reviewed: Missing
    • Written employment contract: Missing
    • 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: 94.4%; rating input score 94; 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: 14.3%; rating input score 67; 67th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 2.09; rating input score 53; 53rd percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.05; rating input score 78; 78th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 5.1%; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: -1.2% per year; rating input score 0; 7th percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 0.7% per year; rating input score 100; 8th percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 5% per year; rating input score 100; 34th percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • What they do: 4 programs and campaigns described on the official site · 2 operating locations identified
  • Where the money goes: 69.4% of revenue deployed · 82.4% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 17 of 18 board members independent · 9 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 5 filed program accomplishments · $21.6M in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $593K · 24 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
  • Highest-paid contractors: 5 contractors listed · $3.9M reported
  • Consistency: 30 of 31 current checks pass · 1 finding to review
  • Schedules: 6 filed schedules · includes major donors and executive pay
  • Filing history: 16 filing years from 2010 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 6 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.

Key Signals

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

  • High — Growth: Program expense growth scored 0/100.
  • Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 53/100.
  • Review — Transparency & Controls: Schedule R controlled transactions itemized did not reconcile in the filed values.
  • Review — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 57/100.