The Meg Foundation

Nonprofit profile at a glance

EIN
823010153
IRS 990 coverage
2022–2025
Forms available
Form 990 2025, Form 990-EZ 2020, Form 990-N 2019
Location
Denver, CO, USA
Phone
3108505102
Rating
78
Verdict
SUPPORTED
Rating confidence
Moderate
Sector
Rehabilitative Medical Services

Official website

Reported finances

Revenue
$464,066
Expenses
$439,146
Assets
$58,736
Liabilities
$725

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

Leadership & pay

12 people listed

Executive titles in this filing

  • Jody Thomas (CEO)

Highest reported compensation

  • Jody Thomas (CEO): $129,808 total reported compensation
  • Leslie Lipscomb (CFO): $86,539 total reported compensation
  • Amber Sutter (CFOO): $7,536 total reported compensation

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

Overview

Mission

Empower families with the skills, strategies, and support they need to manage pain and medical anxiety. We give people not just information, but a path to self-advocacy and action.

What it reported doing in 2025

The Meg Foundation develops and distributes free, evidence-based pain management resources for families, health care providers, and organizations worldwide through its website. In 2025, the Foundation expanded global reach through transaction initiatives, strategic partnerships with health care systems, and continued development of new digital resources and tools designed to improve access and usability. We also rolled out new tool kits for different types of pain that have helped pediatric patients. These efforts support the Foundation's mission to reduce unnecessary suffering and create better health outcomes through accessible, science backed education.

Operating model

Revenue model
Donor-supported. 100% of the money available for current operations came from contributions and gifts.
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.
  • Includes noncash contributions: Reported contributions include donated property or goods.

The verdict

SUPPORTED - The filed numbers largely add up and a large share of available resources goes toward mission work. Fundraising costs are high for each dollar raised and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.

Rating breakdown

  • Financial Efficiency: 63
  • Transparency & Controls: 92
  • Accountability: 91
  • Sustainability: 30
  • Growth: 100

Detailed rating inputs

Financial Efficiency

  • Mission deployment rate: 66%; rating input score 66
  • Program expense ratio: 69.8%; rating input score 70
  • Fundraising efficiency: $6.92 raised per $1 spent on fundraising; rating input score 28; 28th percentile among comparable filings

Transparency & Controls

  • Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Pay-setting controls: Limited
  • Foreign activity oversight: Limited
  • Grant itemization coverage: Limited
  • Major donor itemization: Yes; rating input score 100
  • Related-party transparency: Limited

Accountability

  • Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 64th percentile among comparable filings
  • Governance controls: 7 of 9 controls in place; rating input score 78
    • 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: Missing
    • Independent financial-statement audit: Fail

Sustainability

  • Operating margin: 5.4%; rating input score 48; 48th percentile among comparable filings
  • Total-asset coverage ratio: 0.13; rating input score 9; 9th percentile among comparable filings
  • Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.01; rating input score 38; 38th percentile among comparable filings
  • Officer compensation ratio: 51%; rating input score 3; 3rd percentile among comparable filings

Growth

  • Program expense growth: 36.4% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Revenue growth: 28.7% per year; rating input score 100; 92nd percentile among comparable filings
  • Asset growth: 2.1% per year; rating input score 100; 31st percentile among comparable filings

Details

  • Where the money goes: 66% of revenue deployed · 69.8% of spending went to programs
  • Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 7 of 9 filing controls reported
  • Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $306K in reported program spending
  • Leadership: top reported pay $130K · 12 people listed
  • Consistency: 25 of 25 current checks pass
  • Schedules: 5 filed schedules · includes major donors
  • Filing history: 4 filing years from 2022 to 2025
  • Contacts: How to reach this organization
  • Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
  • 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 — Financial Efficiency: Fundraising efficiency scored 28/100.
  • High — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 9/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 48/100.
  • Review — Accountability: Governance controls: Independent financial-statement audit not reported.
  • High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 3/100.
  • Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 38/100.