The American Board of Radiology touted its organizational transparency this week, sharing its 2020 year-end financial statements in an update posted Tuesday.
All told, the Tucson, Arizona-based doc-certification group recorded more than $19.9 million in revenues and gains during 2020, according to its year-end financial statement. Annual fees made up the bulk at nearly $13.8 million, with application fees ($1.8 million) and “investment income” ($4.1 million) also kicking in large sums.
ABR recorded more than $24.2 million in expenses, including $9.8 million on personnel and $11.3 million on “office expenses.” With that, the nonprofit said it recorded a net loss of nearly $4.3 million in 2020. The board was hampered by drops in program-service revenue amid the COVID-19 crisis. But it weathered any shortfalls by tapping its fund balance, which includes more than $2 million in cash-on-hand and $35 million in investment funds.
“To avoid fee increases, the ABR has reserves to address fluctuations in capital requirements and operational expenses,” Executive Director Brent Wagner, MD, MBA, said by email. “Our reserves have grown over the past several decades thanks to prudent investments.”
Physicians have criticized the ABR in recent years, targeting its alleged lack of transparency, large fund balance and high user fees. On average, radiologists spend nearly $15,000 on maintaining their certification over the course of a 30-year career, marking the specialty as one of the most expensive.
A report from an American College of Radiology task force released one year ago specifically cited ABR’s total assets (tallying $45.8 million at 2020’s conclusion) and urged the board to release more-detailed budget documents.
“We acknowledge there is a cost of doing business and reserves are necessary but increased transparency and cost effectiveness are encouraged,” the task force said at the time, citing “increasing transparency” of ABR’s activities and finances as one key area for collaboration with the rest of the field.
Madelene Lewis, MD, chair of the ACR task force, could not provide comment on the board of radiology’s Nov. 16 announcement by press time. Sadhish Siva, MD—a radiologist and ABR critic who sued the organization last year over its programs and finances—declined to comment Thursday.
ABR said it first posted the financial documents in October. The organization also noted that, since 2017, it has received Platinum status from GuideStar, recognizing the nonprofit’s transparency.
“The ABR Board of Governors is steadfast in its commitment to responsibly manage all financial aspects of the business to effectively meet the organization’s mission,” officials said in the Nov. 16 blog post.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.